Dimensions and Dragons
by Little Bit of Frog
Summary: Dirk, Todd, and Farah travel to another dimension to rescue the Rowdies and track down a young man they were hired to find. Post Season 2. Can be read as a stand alone or post Stoned. Rated T for some language and a bit of violence.
1. Chapter 1

**Dimensions and Dragons**

I don't own these characters or make any money off these. I just really love the show and enjoy writing about these amazing characters.

 **Chapter 1**

The moonlight spilled out of the sky and filtered between the branches of the trees that were growing at the base of the mountain. Amanda looked down at the silver patches of light that speckled her body.

 _Just like in my vision._

"What now, Drummer?" asked Martin.

"We're close." Said Amanda "He's here somewhere."

For over a week, Amanda had been having visions of a man with powers. But these visions had felt… strange. She couldn't explain it. Something seemed off. Or at least different. It could be her power was growing and changing. Or maybe something else…

Beast gasped. "Look!" she cried.

Amanda saw a silhouette of a dragon sailing against the full moon. That had been in her vision too. The dragon was too far away for her to be sure of the size, but she was pretty sure it could at least carry off a midsize car.

"Ok," said Amanda "we're close. Let's keep moving."

She'd barely taken three steps when Cross grabbed her shoulder.

"What?" she asked.

"Something's wrong." He looked at the other Rowdy Boys. "You smell that?"

"What does it smell like?" asked Amanda.

"Trouble." Said Gripps.

"Get down!" shouted Vogel, but it was too late. Amanda was hit in the face with a blast of fog that knocked her to the ground.

* * *

Farah couldn't remember the last time she'd taken a run at such a slow pace. But, judging from the wheezing sounds coming from Dirk, this was as fast as she could go without killing the boys. At least Todd was finally winded enough to stop whining.

They rounded the corner to a bench, and Farah slowed to a stop.

"Water break." She said.

Both Dirk and Todd collapsed onto the bench.

After a long draw from his water bottle, Todd shook his head. "I'm done. This was a great first day. Time to go home."

"We just started!" exclaimed Farah "If I had realized you two were this out of shape, I would have insisted on this months ago. A good cardio routine can save your life. Especially in our line of work."

"Look!' Dirk cried happily "Doughnuts!"

Tucked across the street was a tiny doughnut shop.

"Are you serious?" said Farah.

"We earned it with our morning death run." Said Dirk.

"I agree with him." Said Todd, who was still trying to catch his breath on the bench.

Farah narrowed her gaze. "Ok, you asked me to do this, Todd. You said that your doctor told you that if you didn't start exercising and eating better that it would make your pararibulitis worse. And you," she said as she turned to Dirk. "you practically cried when you begged me to put you through the paces and get you two healthy."

"But," Dirk stammered "the sign says organic."

"Yeah," said Todd "it's practically a health food."

"I am not your mother!" exclaimed Farah "If you want to sit on your asses, eat crap, and slowly deteriorate, I can't stop you. But don't beg for my help and then treat it like some massive inconvenience I'm inflicting on you!"

Both boys looked down at the ground.

"She's right." Todd muttered.

"I know." Groaned Dirk.

They were so pitiful, Farah couldn't help but smile a little. They could be frustrating, but she wouldn't trade either of her guys for anything.

"How about twenty more minutes earns one organic doughnut?" she said.

They instantly perked up.

Todd turned to Dirk. "Do you think we can do it?"

Dirk stood slowly. "We must. Our destiny awaits."

"Make sure you're drinking enough water." Said Farah "Refill at the fountain if you need to."

"Farah," said Dirk "you say twenty minutes earns a doughnut. Would twenty- five earn us two?"

"No." said Farah "How would that logic even work?"

"What if I get the vegan kind?"

"No, Dirk. Twenty minutes, one doughnut, vegan or not."

Dirk sighed heavily, then he squared his shoulders and said "Come on Todd. Let's do this!"

They looked over at Todd and they both froze. He was standing very still with a strange, far away look on his face.

"Todd?" said Farah.

He didn't answer. He just kept looking towards them with a blank expression on his face. Then he was falling.

Farah and Dirk rushed forward and managed to catch him before his head hit the concreate. They lowered him gently onto the ground.

"Todd? Can you hear me? Todd?"

He didn't respond. He laid there, perfectly still on the ground, staring upwards.

Farah began searching him for his pills. She found them in his pocket and started to open the bottle when Dirk stopped her.

"No!" he shouted.

"What is it?" she asked.

"This isn't an attack." He said.

"What are you talking about? What else could it be?"

"I… I don't know." He admitted "But it's not that. I can feel it."

Farah looked down at Todd. His breathing was slow and shallow. There was no color in his face. His eyes were open, but Farah could see the life draining out of them. As if there was no one behind those eyes. If she hadn't had her finger on the weak pulse on his wrist, she would have sworn he was dead.

"Call 911!" she said.

* * *

Todd stood up from the bench, and suddenly everything moved in slow motion. His body felt heavy and sluggish, and everything around him moved so slowly. He blinked, and it seemed to take an eternity. He looked at Dirk and Farah. They were speaking, but he couldn't hear what they were saying. Their lips moved slowly and deliberately, but no sound came out.

They turned and looked at him. Concern swept over their faces. He saw Farah's lips form his name, but he still couldn't hear her.

Then he was falling. It was agonizingly slow, but he couldn't catch himself. He felt Farah and Dirk grab hold of him before he hit the ground. He could feel their hands on him, but that sensation was fading. Like his body was dissolving in their hands.

Then he felt himself being pulled. Through time and space and air and water. He had no control over what was happening to him as he rushed through reality.

Then he was in a room. He could see everything, but no one seemed able to see him. He saw Martin and Gripps unconscious on hospital beds. He heard Beast yelling somewhere. There were people dressed in scrubs and lab coats that were scrambling through the room.

Todd was moving again. Being pulled to the far end of the room. There, struggling and strapped to a hospital bed, was Amanda.

Todd tried to reach for her, but he had no hands. Or arms. Or body.

 _What is going on?_

Amanda went rigid, then she turned her head and looked straight at him.

"Todd?" she said.

He tried to answer, but he was being pulled back. Rushing through reality again, only different. Before he felt like he was being drawn in a straight line. This time he was being yanked back like a rubberband that had snapped. He was flipping and falling and it was all happening so fast.

He gasped.

He was laying on his back on the hot pavement in the park. People he had never seen before were crowded over him. Their latex gloved hands were touching him, and there was some sort of mask on his face.

"Get off me!" he cried as he tried to push them away. His arms felt clunky and strange, like he only had partial control of them.

"Sir," said a female voice "you need to calm down. You passed out. We're trying to help."

"Get away!" he shrieked as he tore at the mask on his face.

"Todd!"

He recognized that voice. Farah.

"Todd, just hold still! The paramedics are trying to help you!"

His eyes darted around until he found her. She was standing behind the strangers. She reached down and took his hand. As soon as her skin touched his, he felt like he had finally been pulled fully back into his body. He took a deep breath and tried to suppress the panic that had been rising up in him.

The strangers shone lights in his eyes and checked his vitals and asked him questions. He lied when they asked what happened.

"Nothing. I just passed out. That's all."

They tried to take him in the ambulance, but he refused. Farah and Dirk tried to talk him into it, but he would hear none of it. As soon as the paramedics took the oxygen mask off his face, he scrambled away from them.

"I'm sorry." Said the lead paramedic. "We can't take him if he refuses treatment. You will want to keep an eye on him."

"Thank you." Said Farah as the paramedics left.

Todd's legs were a little shaky, but he was managing to stand on his own.

"What happened?" Farah asked as the ambulance drove off. "Dirk said it wasn't an attack, but…"

"It wasn't." said Todd "Something happened. It's like my consciousness left my body and went somewhere."

"Where?" asked Dirk.

"I have no idea. But I do know that Amanda is in danger."

* * *

Despite the fact that Todd seemed fully recovered by the time they got back to the office, Dirk hadn't recovered from the trauma of seeing his friend in that state. Todd had laid there, looking so much like a corpse that the paramedics were actually shocked that he was alive. His breathing was so slow and shallow that they had been forced to give him oxygen. He was completely unresponsive. Farah had held Dirk tightly as he tried to keep it together. He wondered what if he had been wrong. If it actually was a pararibulitis attack and he'd prevented Farah from giving Todd his life saving medicine.

 _What if I had killed him?_

"So, you have no idea where you were?" asked Farah "No sense of how far away it was or…"

"No." said Todd "Nothing. It just felt like a place. I couldn't even smell the air or feel the temperature of the room. I could just see and hear."

"Did you see anything out a window?" asked Farah.

"No windows." Said Todd "Just this creepy lab with Amanda and the Rowdies trapped inside."

"Could it be Blackwing?" asked Farah.

"I don't know. Maybe. We have to find her!"

"We will." Said Farah "But this isn't much to go on. Can you tell me anything else?"

"No." said Todd as he balled his hands into fists in frustration. "I wish I could." He looked at Dirk. "This is your thing, right? We just wander around and you lead the way."

Dirk shook his head. "I'm sorry. I can't. I have no idea what to do."

"Wait," said Todd "so then what's our next step? What do we do?"

Dirk looked up at Farah, who looked just as lost as he did.

Farah turned to Todd. "I don't know."

"But," Todd stammered "you have to know. If Dirk's… whatever, isn't working, it's because you and your logic and training and unreasonably high IQ have the answer."

"But I don't." said Farah "I know what you saw was real and frightening, but it doesn't give us anything to go on. I'm sorry, Todd."

He kept glancing back and forth between them. He looked scared. "But… Amanda's out there."

Dirk stepped forward. "I know. And we are going to find her. But we need a lead, either holistic or logical. Right now, we have neither."

"Then we just go." Said Todd "Let's just get in the car and drive and we'll find her."

"It doesn't work that way Todd, you know that."

"We can't just stand here!" Todd cried "We have to do something!"

Farah put her hand on his shoulder. "And we will. Let's get cleaned up, eat something, and make a plan. We will examine whatever information we do have and go from there."

She gestured towards the office bathroom. It had a small shower that they sometimes used when they were too busy to go back to their apartments. They all kept fresh clothes there too.

"A shower might clear your head. Help you remember details you didn't before. Dirk and I will collect whatever we can on Amanda's last known location."

Todd looked like he wanted to protest, but headed to the shower instead. Farah and Dirk immediately began tracing Amanda's phone. Which apparently stopped giving a gps location somewhere in Alaska.

"What was she doing there?" Farah asked.

"Probably tracking down people like me." Said Dirk "But who knows where she went from there."

Todd came rushing out from his shower wearing nothing but a towel.

"Any news?" he asked.

"Amanda was in Alaska," said Dirk "But we can't trace her past yesterday morning."

"Well, what was she near? Are you feeling anything, you know, holistic? We should go there!"

"We will." Said Farah "After you put on some pants."

"Right." Said Todd as he turned towards the bathroom.

Suddenly, an older coupe entered the office.

"Excuse me, but we are looking for Dirk Gently. Our son is missing and…" the woman trailed off and as she saw Todd. "Are we… interrupting… something?"

"No." said Farah quickly. She turned to Todd and said "There are clean clothes in the back of the office."

"Got it." He said as he started off towards the back.

"You have to help us." Said the man "The woman we hired to find him stopped checking in when she got to Alaska and…"

Todd whirled around so fast that he almost lost his towel. "Was that Amanda?!"

They looked surprised. "Yes," said the woman "Amanda Brotzman."

"She's my sister!" Todd cried as he grabbed the woman by the shoulders. "What do you know about where she went?"

"Todd! Pants!" exclaimed Farah.

Todd suddenly seemed very aware of his state of undress and rushed to the back room.

"I'm so sorry." Said Farah apologetically.

"It's fine." She said "It has been quite a while since I was approached by a passionate, half naked man." She shot a look at her husband.

He completely ignored her as he said "Please, we are desperate to find our son."

Dirk motioned to two empty chairs. "Tell us about your son."

"Travis is turning twenty-eight next month. He's our only child." Said the woman.

"We haven't been properly introduced." Said Farah "I'm Farah Black, head of security and reconnaissance."

"Neil Green." Said Travis' father "This is Martha."

"Dirk Gently," said Dirk as he extended his hand. "Figurehead and in charge of holistic relations."

Martha stared at him. "In charge of… what?"

Todd ran back into the room. His hair was wet and sticking up, as if he'd hurriedly rubbed it with a towel. He was dressed in just a white t-shirt and jeans. His feet were bare and leaving damp footprints on the wooden floor.

"This is Todd Brotzman." Said Dirk "He's not our head of image and public relations."

"You know Amanda." Said Todd "How do you know her?"

"She came to us." Said Martha "Our son hadn't answered our calls in weeks. Amanda showed up in a van with some unique characters and said she needed to find him. That she had a vision about him."

"And you believed her?" said Farah.

"It wouldn't be the strangest thing we've ever seen." Said Neil.

"Care to elaborate?" asked Todd.

Neil and Martha both became tense. "No." Neil said "We wouldn't."

"Was there something… different… about your son?" asked Dirk "Something that was perhaps unusual or surprisingly difficult to explain?"

"Listen," said Neil "our boy is fine. But trouble and… strange… people seem to find him."

"How so?" asked Dirk.

"He's a good boy." Said Martha "And your sister seemed to genuinely care. But now she's not answering either and…" she was fighting tears.

Todd put his hand on her shoulder. "We'll find them. We promise."

* * *

The flight to Alaska was stressful for many reasons. First of all, Farah hated flying. At least when she wasn't in the pilot's seat. She was especially aggravated that the amateur in the cockpit seemed to be going out of his way to hit every shred of turbulence in the sky.

Then there was Dirk. He swore he'd flown before, and she'd believed him since he was from over the pond. But, judging by his reactions to literally everything, she was beginning to believe he was teleported from England to Seattle.

Dirk seemed equal parts terrified and delighted during takeoff. And he went back and forth between being pressed against the window, monologuing about the experience, and prancing down the aisles like a four year old who had decided to befriend the entire flight.

"It's like traveling with a child." Muttered Farah as Dirk helped a flight attendant deliver the drinks.

"Don't look at me." Said Todd "He doesn't get it from my side."

Farah chuckled slightly. She looked over at Todd. She genuinely enjoyed his company, but he was part of the reason she was so stressed. He was putting up a decent front, but she could feel it. He was scared. What if he had an attack in an enclosed area? Of course they had his medicine, and she stuck close to him just in case, but she could feel the 'what if' hanging over them like an anvil. A random man thrashing and screaming on a flight would not go over very well. Every time he coughed or sniffed or shifted his weight, she went on high alert to see what it turned into.

He pretended not to notice, but she knew he could tell. He was far more observant than most people gave him credit. They both were scared of what could happen and, despite the relaxed fronts they were putting up, each knew how afraid the other was. But of course, they never said it. There was an unhealthily large collection of things they probably should talk about but did not. They both knew that too. And of course, it was left unacknowledged.

Farah put her hand on his. She placed it on the back of his hand instead of holding it because she knew how hard he was trying to hide the fact that his palms were sweating. If she felt that, it would be harder to pretend she didn't know how afraid he was.

Dirk had scurried in and out of his seat at least fifty times before they finally had to buckle up for landing. Dirk was delighted with the experience, but Farah was convinced the pilot was trying to recreate the movement of a smooth stone skipping across a pond.

The flight was crowded and there was the inevitable bottle neck from the post landing stampede. The three of them sat in their seats as they waited for the crowd to thin out and quit shoving.

Dirk was grinning. "This whole experience was so much better than I expected! I mean, the view from here is simply no less than totally and completely mind blowing! Did you see the family out in their yard? I waved. I know they say that people that far away can't see us wave but I saw them so I simply can't believe they can't see me. Oh! And the drink cart! Did you see that? Of course you did. I asked for a soda and it was my favorite brand and everything! Well, third favorite, but still delightful!

Dirk was going on and on about the nice lady in row M when Farah felt Todd get tense. She looked over and saw a concerned look on his face.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I… I'm not sure." He said "I feel… weird."

Dirk stopped his rabbit trail speech about the airplane bathrooms and looked at his friend. "Weird how?"

"I don't know." He replied.

"Is it the start of an attack?" asked Farah.

"I don't know." He repeated.

"Is it Amanda again?" asked Dirk.

"I don't know! I just… something's wrong. Something's AHHH!"

Todd let out a sharp cry as he doubled over and wrapped his arms around his middle.

"Is he alright?' asked an old woman who was shuffling down the still crowded aisle.

"He's fine." Said Farah quickly. She turned to Todd. "What's happening?"

"I don't know!" he cried with a pained look on his face.

Farah put her hand on his cheek. He was sweating, but his skin was cold and clammy. "Are you hallucinating? Are you seeing anything that's making you hurt?"

"No," he moaned "it just hurts!"

Todd was folded in half over his lap in his seat, trying to choke down the painful cries that were doing their best to escape.

Farah pulled his pill bottle out of her pocket. "Here." She said as she brought two pills to his mouth.

"N… no." he stammered. "It might be Amanda. I can't risk…"

He screamed.

"Medic!" someone cried "Somebody call a doctor! This young man is having a seizure or something!"

Todd was shaking all over and his breathing was ragged.

"Todd! What's happening? Todd!?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Todd couldn't put into words what was happening. It wasn't just the pain. Todd felt disconnected and as if the very cells of his body were in conflict.

Then it happened. If the first experience could be described as being drawn out of his body, this time could be described as being ripped out.

It was violent and unnatural as he felt his consciousness being torn away from his physical form. He gasped. He was laying on his back. He was in a white room and was alone. He tried to sit up and realized he was tied down on some sort of table.

 _What is happening?_

He turned his head and saw a window into the next room. In that room, also strapped to a hospital bed, was Amanda. She was looking at him.

"Amanda!" he cried "Are you alright?!"

But something strange was happening. When he spoke, she spoke. When he was silent, so was she. Her voice echoed in unison with his. He stared at her in confusion before it hit him. It wasn't a window, it was a mirror.

 _I'm seeing through her eyes._

The door opened.

"Good afternoon Ms. Brotzman."

The man who entered appeared to be in his mid forties. He was wearing a lab coat and holding a clipboard in one hand and a mug that said "Blank Falls, Alaska" in the other. The mug had a picture of a waterfall and a cartoon fish.

"Time to resume our tests." He said.

Once again, Todd felt the connection sever as he careened back into his own body. He sat straight up, still in the seat on the airplane. The passengers were gone and there were several concerned flight attendants gathered around.

"Stay still." Said one of them "The doctor will be here soon."

"I'm fine." He said as he pushed himself up out of his seat. "Sorry to worry you. Just low blood sugar. I should probably get some lunch."

Todd was incredibly unsteady on his feet, and both Dirk and Farah had to each take an arm as they helped him stumble off the plane. All the while they rejected any help and medical attention.

Farah pulled the rental car around, and Dirk eased Todd into the passenger seat.

"What happened?" asked Farah.

"It was Amanda again." Said Todd "But it was different. It was like I was seeing through her eyes. She's trapped and I saw some sort of doctor. She's in trouble!"

"Did you see anything to help us find her?" asked Farah.

"A coffee cup. It had Blank Falls written on it. I know it's not a strong lead, but there was nothing else there to go on."

"Blank Falls it is." Said Farah.

* * *

They drove through the night. Farah and Dirk took shifts behind the wheel while the other rested. Todd barely even dozed as they endured the long hours of travel in a mid sized car.

Blank Falls was beyond middle of nowhere. Far from gas stations and civilization and marked roads was a little building by a big waterfall. The building seemed to be some sort of tourist shop with maps and various tacky memorabilia. Todd spotted the mug he had seen in the window. But it was 5:00 am and the place was closed.

"This doesn't make sense." Said Farah.

"What do you mean?" asked Todd.

"This is so far from everything. Who could possibly drive here for work? The hours say 9:00am to 7:00pm. It's hours away from anything. Where would employees travel from to work here? Do they live on site? In the woods? This looks like the type of place that is built for a lot of tourist traffic, but it was nearly impossible to find. How could it get enough tourists to support it?"

Todd crossed his arms. "Is it me, or is it weird that the exact mug I saw in the vision or whatever it was that lead us to this creepy place is on prominent display in the window?"

"Something is really off." Said Farah "This doesn't feel right." She looked around realized something else was wrong. "Where's Dirk?"

Dirk's voice rose over the roar of the waterfall. "Todd! Farah! You have to see this!"

They climbed to the top of the waterfall where Dirk was standing dangerously close to the edge.

"Look!" he cried "Do you see it?!"

Farah and Todd cautiously approached him.

"How about you take a few steps away from that ledge?" said Farah.

"But look!" Dirk cried "Amanda was here!"

"What?!" exclaimed Todd as he rushed over to where Dirk was standing.

"Down there!" Dirk pointed to the other side of the river at the base of the waterfall. "The Rowdy Van! They parked it behind those bushes!"

Dirk leaned forward and slipped. Todd grabbed him, but lost his balance as well. They both would have toppled over into the water, except Farah raced over and grabbed the back of Todd's shirt. They stood there, barely keeping their balance and looking a bit like a trio from a cartoon trying to challenge gravity and physics.

"Slowly," said Farah "lean towards me."

The boys obeyed and, for a moment, it seemed it was going to work. But then the ground crumbled under Farah's feet and the three of them went plunging over the side.

* * *

Todd hit the water at the bottom of the waterfall with enough force that he wasn't sure which way was up. While thankful that it was deep enough that he hadn't slammed into any rocks, he wasn't sure if he could make it to air before his lungs burst. He finally broke through the surface and was coughing and gasping.

"Farah!" he called "Dirk!"

"Here!" the voice was Farah's. Todd saw her at the edge of the water, dragging Dirk onto shore.

Todd swam over and climbed out of the water. "Is he alright?"

"F… fine." Dirk sputtered. "Just a bit banged up. And damp."

"How did we get here?" Farah asked.

"We fell." Said Todd, who was a bit concerned that she hit her head.

"No, Todd, I mean _here."_

Then it hit him. The trees. The terrain. The fact that they had been in snowy Alaska at 5:00am and were now in a tropical area at high noon was a bit unexpected.

"There must be some sort of portal." Said Dirk.

"Are we still in our world?" asked Todd.

"I'm not sure." Said Farah "It looks like it could be."

Dirk nodded. "It is certainly lacking the bright flashing signs that cried 'not in your world anymore' that Wendimore had in spades."

Todd slipped off his soaking wet and no longer weather appropriate coat. He reached into his pocket and a feeling of panic washed over him.

"What's wrong?" asked Farah.

"My pills! They're gone! They must have fallen into the water!"

Todd rushed to the edge of the river and was searching desperately for any sign of them.

"It's no use." Said Farah "Even if you do find them, they would have dissolved by now."

"Maybe not." Said Todd "Maybe some holistic thing happened and they're fine and…"

"Dragon!" Dirk cried.

They looked up just as a large, tan colored dragon the size of a van swooped down at them. They scattered as the dragon's deadly talons ripped into the ground where they once stood.

"Run!" Farah shouted.

They fled into the thick foliage as the flying predator cried out in frustration as they ran deeper into the woods. It circled in the air a few times and then flew off.

"Well," said Dirk "I believe we found our flashing sign."

"We must not have been worth the chase." Said Todd.

"We were lucky." Said Farah "We need to find Amanda and the Rowdies and get out fast. I doubt that was the only one and I only have one gun."

"Where do we start?' asked Todd.

"Oh, I have an inkling." Said Dirk.

Farah and Todd turned their eyes in the direction Dirk was looking. Not far from them, jutting out from the woods, was a modern looking, tall, fortress of a building. It was in sharp and jarring contrast to the very natural world around it.

"That looks like it's from our side of the portal." Said Todd.

"I believe it is." Said Dirk "Come on! Amanda's in there! I'm sure of it!"

The walk was long and humid. The wet clothes kept them cool for a while, but finally, the heat of the day kicked up and made their hike a miserable one.

"We need water." Said Todd.

"We have no idea what's safe to drink here." Said Farah "We could poison ourselves."

Dirk found himself wishing he had taken a few gulps of water when he had been bobbing in the river.

 _I must remember that the next time I almost drown._ He thought.

There were no guards stationed outside the building.

"Low security." Said Farah "There must not be much of a threat here besides those dragons. My guess is the outside is highly secure for a large animal attack, but it seems they are not overly concerned about someone trying to come in through the door. You would use completely different security and defense procedures for that. They're not expecting this kind of invasion. We may be with the only people in this entire world. We lucked out. Again."

"Great!" said Todd "Let's just get them out. We'll figure out the rest later."

"Down!" cried Dirk.

They all hit the dirt as a red dragon flew overhead. It didn't seem to see them, and it circled around the highest part of the building and flew away.

"We're vulnerable out here." Said Farah.

"Then we have to go in now!" said Todd "Before the doctor hurts her!"

"We need a plan." Said Farah "We're no good to Amanda if we're dead."

Suddenly, the door on the side of the building opened. The trio ducked down into the bushes as the man walked around the corner. He lit a cigarette and wandered out around the corner of the building. Apparently he was on break.

The door was swinging shut and Dirk darted in. Todd and Farah were close behind, and soon they were all in a dimly lit hallway.

"This doesn't count as a plan." Whispered Farah.

"This way." Hissed Dirk as he entered an unlocked room.

"Are you feeling the pull of the Universe?" asked Todd in a quiet voice.

"Sure. Well, no. Not really. But I still think this is right."

He was reaching for another door when he was grabbed by Todd and Farah and yanked down under a table. He could hear the voices of men passing by. Dirk could see their shoes and the ends of their lab coats.

"… but what are the odds of that happening again? Those freaks with powers and that alien or whatever she is are the first to ever even get close, and we were expecting them! No normal people can ever find us."

"They're not worried about normals. It's the others, like them, that the new security would be for. We have to be…"

The door shut behind them and the rest of the conversation was lost.

Farah was holding a smartphone.

"Wait, where did that come from?" asked Todd.

"I lifted it off one of them."

"Do they get adequate reception in this dimension?" asked Dirk.

"I sincerely doubt they can call our world from here." Said Farah "But it's still a portable computer. They can store whatever relevant information they want and keep it in their pocket."

"Can you get in?" asked Todd.

"I think so. The security for the general information is minimal. This must be the stuff everyone knows. He has more sensitive files that I'd need a lot longer to get into, but I think I can find what we need." She tapped the screen for a bit and said "Amanda has been separated from the others. She's not far from here. Let's go!"

The crept through the building to a room marked "Holding Area 3". They opened the door and saw a cell on the far end of the room. Laying on the cot with her back turned to them was a familiar form.

"Amanda!" Todd cried as he ran to her cell door.

She sat up and whirled around. "Todd! You're all here!"

Farah ran over and begin to try and hack into the lock.

"Hurry!" said Amanda "It's a trap! They lured you here!"

"What?" said Todd "I thought you called me."

"The first time was me." Said Amanda "It was an accident. We came here looking for a Special and they somehow figured that out and set a trap and captured us! I was surprised when I realized my mind could reach out to you like that. But they figured it out too and decided they wanted to study Dirk. They did something to my brain and forced it to call you again."

"That's why it felt so different." Said Todd.

"Yeah, I'll bet it did. Hurt like hell for me. And I couldn't warn you. They gave that super obvious hint about Blank Falls, which is where they have their gateway. But they think you're all stupid and were actually planning to contact you again today to give more hints. They are sending an ambush team to the waterfall to catch you before you get in."

"Is it Blackwing?" asked Dirk.

"No. No affiliation as far as I can tell. Just a bunch of insane scientists who decided to capture and manipulate people with powers. Like Blackwing's rebellious little brother or something."

"I guess they couldn't believe we would find the portal without assistance." Said Dirk.

"Yeah. They seriously don't get how your thing works." Said Amanda "They were going to sedate you and bring you in alone at the other side of the portal."

"They have probably found our car by now." Said Farah "If they have someone stationed there, they are going to figure out we made it here ahead of schedule."

The cell door opened, and Amanda raced out and embraced her brother.

"Does the portal work both ways?" asked Farah.

"I don't know." Said Amanda "The guy I was tracking opens them with his mind. Not sure if he's doing it on his own or if he's a prisoner here too. Never actually got to him. And we have to get past the dragons to even try to get to the portal."

"What's up with those dragons?" Todd asked.

"They're vicious." Said Amanda "They've yet to capture a live one, which pisses off the scientists to no end. The Rowdies and I almost escaped when they caught us and they were so mad that they fed the head of security to the dragons. They put him on the roof and let the dragons rip him apart."

"I'm not finding any helpful info about the portal on this thing." Said Farah as she looked at the phone.

"There won't be." Said Amanda. "We need access to a central computer. There's one a level down from here."

"What about the other Rowdies?" asked Dirk "We could use some backup in this place."

"I'm not sure where they are holding them." Said Amanda.

"I see two possibilities." Said Farah as she examined her info. "One isn't far from here. Let's try that first."

"Alright." Said Todd "Let's go."

Todd knew he should be more scared, but the relief of finding Amanda alive cancelled out every other feeling he was having. Farah was leading the charge, her gun ready for any unfortunate person who would try and stop them.

"What about internal cameras?" asked Todd.

"They're way more worried about someone stealing info about this place from the inside then someone breaking in from the outside." said Amanda "Surveillance is super limited."

They entered the holding area only to find it empty.

"Shit." Said Amanda "What's our next option?"

"Not close." Said Farah.

Todd reached over to open the door back into the hallway when he saw it. A string tied around his wrist.

"What the…"

Farah turned to him. "What's wrong?"

"I… I'm not sure. I think I'm having a pararibulitis attack, but it doesn't hurt."

Amanda was immediately at his side. "They aren't always painful. Take your pills now before it gets any worse."

"He doesn't have them." Said Dirk "They were lost in the waterfall."

"Todd," said Farah "what's happening?"

"There's a string tied on my wrist." He looked down "Both wrists. And on my elbows and ankles and knees too."

"Where do the strings go?" asked Amanda.

"Up." Said Todd. He looked at the ceiling and saw they were attached to a crossbar far above his head. "It's like they're the strings for a marionette and I'm the puppet." He said. Then he saw the giant scissors floating towards his strings.

"Oh shit."

"What?!" cried Amanda.

Before he could answer, the scissors snapped the strings and he collapsed in a heap on the ground.

Farah, Amanda, and Dirk rushed to his side.

"What happened?" asked Farah.

"The strings were cut!" cried Todd "I can't move!"

"Are you in any pain?" asked Amanda.

"No, I just… I can't move anything below my neck!"

Farah grabbed his hand. "Can you feel this?" She asked in her calm in crisis voice.

"Yes. I can feel everything, I just can't move!"

"Try and squeeze my hand." She said.

Todd tried with everything in him to make his hand grasp hers, but there wasn't even a slight quiver of muscle movement.

"Ok," said Amanda "stop before you burst a blood vessel in your face."

Todd grunted in frustration. Farah looked up at Dirk.

"You're going to have to carry him." She said.

"Right." Said Dirk as he readied himself to lift his friend.

Farah stood and pulled her gun. "Stay close. We need to…"

She didn't get a chance to finish as several bullets burst through her chest.

* * *

Dr. Matiss was shocked when the silent alarm was tripped. The chances of being discovered were virtually zero. Between how well the portal was hidden and the hostile wildlife, it was barely worth putting locks on the door. He had almost not bothered setting an alarm on the prisoner's door, and that was only to appease the new head of security.

They tracked them down to a holding room. The security team had strict orders to take out Farah Black first since she was the most dangerous. Todd Brotzman was acceptable as collateral damage, but Amanda Brotzman and Dirk Gently had to be brought in alive.

By the time the room was secure and Dr. Matiss was let in, Ms. Brotzman and Mr. Gently were cuffed and subdued. Ms. Black and Mr. Brotzman were on the floor and covered in blood. They were both alive and conscious, but they were clearly not going anywhere. The important ones were detained.

"What should we do with these two?" asked a guard as he pointed to the two figures on the floor.

"Take them to the roof and feed them to the dragons." He said.

Amanda Brotzman yelled and Dirk Gently begged as the others were hauled away.

* * *

Farah couldn't move. The bullet holes in her body were severe. She didn't have long to be conscious. When she was shot, she fell on top of Todd. He was almost as bloody looking as she was, though none of it was his. In all the confusion and fighting, the guards must have assumed that he had been shot as well.

The guards dumped them unceremoniously on the roof and shut the door behind them.

"Farah!" Todd called "Are you awake?"

"Yeah…" said Farah weakly as she painfully turned her head towards him.

"Can you move?" she asked.

"Hang on. I will. I have to." He grunted and strained, but his body stayed perfectly still.

Farah tried to reach for his hand, but it was just a little too far. If he could have lifted his arm a few inches, they would have been able to touch. He stared at her hand and tried to will his arm to move. He had no success.

"I'm sorry." She said "I should have seen that coming. I should have known it was too easy."

"No, this is my fault." He said "I should have held onto my pills." He looked into her eyes "I'm going to fix this. The attack is going to pass and I'll be fine and I'll get you to safety."

"Todd," she said "it's worse than that. I need real medical attention."

"Then I'll find that! You're the strongest person I've ever known and I know you can pull through this! I just need to get…" he strained again as he tried to force his body to cooperate. "I'll fix this! Just hold on and…"

He stopped talking as they heard the flapping of wings. The dragons had arrived.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"Let go of me!" Amanda howled as she and Dirk were dragged to their cell. They were roughly tossed in and Amanda rushed to the locked door.

"Please!" she begged "Don't kill Todd and Farah! They won't talk! This isn't even close to the strangest shit they've seen! No one would believe them anyway!"

Nobody even acknowledged her as they left and locked the room. Amanda sunk to the floor.

"It's my fault." She said "You're captured, and Todd and Farah are dead because of me! Because my stupid power called Todd when I was in danger and of course he crossed dimensions and faced dragons to save me…"

Dirk sat on the floor next to her. "We don't know they're dead. I've thought they were both goners so many times. But it's Todd and Farah we're talking about. I believe they will survive this."

Amanda looked up at him. "Why? Why do you believe it?"

"Because," he said "I have to."

* * *

Kaavi adjusted her powerful, leathery wings to change her course. More humans had been sent to challenge them.

Ever since those creatures first appeared over a year ago, they had continued to challenge the dragons. They would attack with strange weapons and retreat into this mysterious and powerful fortress that the dragons could not penetrate. The human bodies were tiny, soft, and frail, but their weapons had prevented the dragons from being able to drive them away.

A full out war had been barely avoided. Kaavi did not want her people slaughtered, and she only ever encountered humans when they made a direct challenge. She had killed a few in self-defense, but she was not eager to claim more life.

Usually, humans were encountered out in the wild. Since they could not communicate with them, it was impossible to ask what they wanted. Every human they had ever encountered had challenged them without any attempt to express anything except violence.

The first human she had killed was attempting to steal an egg from the nest. What greater act of aggression could there be? She nearly declared war then, but the small size of her council and the lack of support from surrounding dragon councils stopped her. They still had no idea where these creatures had come from, and many of the elders feared angering them and causing more to arrive. As long as the threat was manageable, there would be no support. And of course, her sister, Greel, was looking for any excuse or controversial decision to challenge her right to the throne. Greel never forgave their father for choosing Kaavi as his successor.

"Humans." Said Regg "On the roof."

Occasionally, the humans came to the top of their structure to challenge them to physical combat. It was barbaric and infuriating, but it would also be dishonorable to refuse. The unarmed humans always lost, but one had seriously injured one of the young dragons of their council, and so Kaavi tried to take these challenges personally as often as she could.

She circled the roof. Her dark green scales reflected the sunlight. In their youth, Greel had often teased her about having such a common color scale. But Kaavi liked it. She was not royal orange like her sister, but she looked more like the common folk just as her mother did. She liked anything that reminded her of her mother.

She began surveying the scene.

"I see two." Said Regg.

"I smell blood." Replied Kaavi.

"They've been in a fight. Perhaps they could not decide who would challenge first."

They landed and looked at the two figures laying on the roof.

"They've nearly finished the job for us." Said Regg.

Kaavi moved towards them. A female and a male. They were both laying on their backs and covered in blood. Kaavi approached the female first. She could sense that she was dying. Her frail body was beginning to shut down. Kaavi was unsure how she was even conscious. The human had been injured by human weapons, but Kaavi could not detect any trace of those weapons nearby. She could not smell the residue of the shot in the air or sense the lingering vibration of the weapon firing. Had it happened before she came to the roof?

"Strange." She said as she approached the male. His clothes were bloody, but the blood smelled like the females. He appeared uninjured. He was the challenger. He would be killed.

Kaavi stood over him and bared her considerable teeth. His eyes were wide and terrified, but he did not move. He didn't even tremble. She stood over him on all fours and lowered her face inches from his and growled. A deep, powerful growl. She could sense the fear pouring off of him, but no aggression or movement at all. Was he arrogant? Did he really believe she would not kill him? Did he think she was weak? She used her hand and roughly flipped him over onto his stomach. He coughed and gasped as the air was knocked out of him, but he still didn't move. Kaavi opened her mouth and prepared to snap his neck.

The female yelled. It was that strange, barking sound that humans made. The male responded in shaky, but calm barks. Then Kaavi felt it. The energy only a few in her council could detect. The ability to understand just a little more than could be observed. But she knew it was true. She moved away from the male.

"What is it?" asked Regg.

"They aren't challengers. They didn't fight each other." She was trying to make sense of the thoughts swirling in her head. She couldn't explain it, but she could feel it. "Why would they be out here? The female is dying from injuries that she sustained elsewhere. I don't know what is wrong with the male, but I believe he cannot move." She looked back and forth between the two of them, trying to understand the connection.

"They didn't fight each other to see who would be the first to challenge. In fact, I believe they are mates. And I don't think they ever intended to challenge us either. They were placed here. Injured and taken here like…" It clicked. Anger burned inside her as she let out a mighty roar.

"What?" said Regg "What do you see?"

"These two! Their people tried to kill them! They have been sent to us to finish the job! As if we are animals to feed their criminals to!" she roared again. Would the disrespect from these creatures never end? She reached down and lifted the male into her arms.

"Take the other! Bring them to the cave!"

The smell of shock came off of Regg. "Bring humans to our home? Why?"

"If they wanted us to kill them, we will cure them instead! They do not dictate our actions!"

Regg hesitated. "Your sister and the elders will object."

"Let them!" said Kaavi. Then she lunged at Regg's throat. "Do you defy me?"

Regg lifted his face, exposing his vulnerable throat. The highest sign of respect he could show. "No, my leader. I am now, as always, loyal to you."

Kaavi stepped back and looked down at the helpless human in her arms. She hoped she would not regret this decision as she flew her enemies to her home.

* * *

When the dragon flipped Todd over, he knew it was over. His pararibulitis attack wasn't letting up and he couldn't do more than make faces at his attacker. He felt the dragons' hot breath on his neck.

"No!" Farah cried.

Todd couldn't believe how strong she was. How she was even still alive, let alone able to yell and reach towards him. And he'd failed her. His useless body was about to be killed and she would die soon after. So much was left unsaid. He wanted to beg her forgiveness. To say he was sorry he wasn't strong enough to save them. To articulate the thoughts and feelings he'd had since the moment he met her. But what he said was,

"It's ok. Just… don't look. Please."

Deep down he knew she didn't have much longer, but he hoped and prayed he was wrong and that she would somehow escape and rescue Amanda and Dirk and they would get out of this dimension together. He was pretty sure he could rest in peace if that happened. He closed his eyes and prepared to be no more.

 _I'm sorry._

Then the dragon pulled away from him. It roared and howled and made sounds Todd had no idea how to describe. But he did know without any doubt that the creature was angry.

Then the green dragon reached down and scooped Todd up into its arms. He had no idea why that had happened. The dragon lunged at the dark blue dragon, and the blue one lifted its head and exposed its neck. That seemed to calm the green one down. Then Green lifted into the air with Todd in its arms.

"Wait!" Todd yelled "Farah!"

He tried to look back, but all he could do was turn his head into the dragons' chest.

"Farah!"

He wanted to do something. Anything. Had the other dragon taken Farah? Had she been left to bleed out? Had the blue dragon killed her?

Then another thought came to his head.

 _Where is it taking me?_

Why hadn't it killed him? Where were they going? Why? What was happening?

They flew to what appeared to be a mountain, but it was covered in cave openings.

 _It's a dragon hive._

They flew through one of the holes, and the green dragon landed and began to walk with Todd in its arms. They were in some sort of inner room and Todd was laid down in a large nest.

Three smaller, skinny dragons that were maroon in color rushed to Todd's side. They were tiny compared to Green and its blue companion, but they had to be close to seven feet tall. Their wings were so small that Todd guessed they weren't meant for distance flight. One of the maroon ones approached the green one and Green roared so loud that the walls shook. The three maroon ones lifted their heads and exposed their necks, just like the blue one had before. Todd guessed it was like a salute or some other sign of surrender or respect. The green one seemed satisfied with the gesture and sat watching as the other three scurried around Todd.

One of them grabbed his face and pried his mouth open while another shoved some sort of sour grass into his mouth. He wanted to spit it out, but they covered his mouth and forced his jaw up and down in a chewing motion. A liquid was being released from the grass and it was making his mouth and throat feel numb. They sat him up, and the third dragon put a bowl in front of Todd's face as he spit the wad of chewed grass into it. The dragon flew away with the bowl in its hands while Todd wondered if he would ever be able to feel his lips and tongue again.

The two remaining dragons laid him on his back and began examining him. They sniffed the blood on his shirt and then began to undress him. Soon all the bloody clothing was removed, and he was left with just his boxer shorts. They took a bowl of warm water and a cloth and began to clean the blood off his face and neck. Then they rolled him on his stomach and pressed on his spine and pushed on pressure points. One was pushing hard on two points on his back. While it had been a while since he'd taken an anatomy class, he was pretty sure that was where his kidneys were located. Maybe it was some sort of medical exam. Could they be trying to figure out what was wrong with him?

 _Good luck._

They rolled him onto his back again and pressed on pulse points and one rested its ear against Todd's chest right over his heart. The other began pressing on Todd's middle below his ribs. Because there was zero tension in his abdominal muscles, the dragon was able to push painfully deep into Todd's internal organs. He involuntarily let out a sharp cry.

Green roared again and the two maroon ones once again showed their necks. That apparently ended the exam, as they lifted him up and laid him on some sort of blanket and wrapped him up like a burrito. The cloth was rough against his skin, but at least it was warm. They took some sort of salve and wiped it across Todd's forehead. It instantly made his eyelids heavy.

Green lifted him up and cradled him like a baby. He had so many questions, but he couldn't think. His eyes closed, and he felt Green's gentle breathing as the leathery dragon scales rose and fell against his cheek as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Dirk woke up strapped to a table. He had no idea how he got there. He and Amanda had been huddled on the floor, comforting each other, and then he woke up tied to an exam table. Had they drugged him?

"Hello?" he called. He wasn't sure if he was more afraid of silence, or someone answering.

The room was white and had no windows. It was as nondescript as the rooms Todd had described in his visions. The place was bare except for him and his exam table. They hadn't even bothered to change his clothes.

The door opened, and a tall, blond doctor entered.

"Hello, Mr. Gently." He said "I'm Dr. Matiss. I am the scientist assigned to your case."

"I see…" said Dirk "Where is Amanda?"

"Dr. Meadows is assigned to her." He said "Now, let's focus on you."

"Todd and Farah. What happened to them?"

"The dragons ate them last night. There. Now that everyone is accounted for, let's get started."

"You've captured and killed my friends and you expect me to cooperate?!" Dirk cried.

Dr. Matiss leaned in. "Do you notice how I'm alone? How lacking this room is of sharp, scary, and invasive equipment? We want to understand you, but we prefer to do it the easy way. Answer my questions. Cooperate. Help us understand your ability. Then the tests will stay simple and non-invasive. If you choose to make things difficult, we will have to get more… resourceful in our methods." He stood over Dirk and added "Trust me, you want to cooperate."

Dirk swallowed. He wondered how much of what that man said was true. He wondered if Todd and Farah were really dead. He felt scared and numb and the universe didn't seem to have anything to say.

"Let's start small." Said Dr. Matiss. "What is your name?"

* * *

Kaavi held the human while it slept. It was the only way to make sure that no one would decide to take out their feelings for the crimes of his people on him. As evil as those actions had been, this one was defenseless, and his scent was unfamiliar. He was not one of the ones who they had encountered before. And beyond that, she could sense something in him that was unlike the others. She couldn't place it. There was something, a connection, that was different. No one was angrier than she for what had been done to her people, but she also knew deep down that this human should not have to pay for what others had done.

Thankfully, Greel was far away on a mission. Her sister would have been ready to challenge Kaavi's command over something as controversial as putting a human under her protection. Thankfully, none of the others were as bold. As long as she kept him close, he would be safe. At least until Greel returned.

She looked down at the sleeping human. He was as frail as the others of his species. He had nothing like the tough scales of the dragons and his bones could have been snapped by a child. And yet, they had never encountered anything so dangerous.

When the Healers had examined him, they could find nothing wrong. As Kaavi suspected, none of the blood was his own. Even after undressing him, there were no injuries except minor cuts and bruises. Nothing that explained his apparent paralysis. Of course, they had very few chances to examine a live human, and certainly not to the extent of this one. They had very little to go on as far as how his body was supposed to work.

But something was very wrong with him. Kaavi wished she could understand. Perhaps understanding these creatures was the key to countering their fear of them.

Then Kaavi felt it. Something had changed. Something… significant. She couldn't explain it, but she could sense it. Something had shifted since she tucked the human in her arms several hours before.

 _No._

She lifted him out of her arms and dumped him out of the blanket. He woke up and flailed wildly as he fell onto the ground.

Kaavi roared. He had made a fool of her. He had somehow feigned injury to infiltrate her home. He had even covered himself in the blood of the female to disguise it. And she had fallen for it. Greel was right. Her feelings and instincts were nothing but superstitious nonsense.

He scrambled to his feet. He'd made a mistake. He was defenseless and trapped with no way out of the cave. She lunged at him, and then she froze.

Every human she had previously encountered had either fled or attacked. But he stood there, unmoving with his head lifted and throat exposed. No human had ever purposefully made itself vulnerable to a dragon.

She approached him slowly. This was unlike the day before. His body had been limp and unmoving, as if he had no control over it. While he had been clearly afraid, his body had not responded in fear. His muscles didn't tense, and he never flinched or pulled away. This time, he was tense and visibly trembling, but he was choosing to stand there, frightened and vulnerable, and showing respect to her power.

She could feel him fighting every instinct in his body to stand that way. She closed the gap between them so that they were nearly touching. His eyes were wide enough that she could see her reflection in them. His heart was pounding so hard that she could sense the vibrations in the air. This was not out of inability to respond or an instinctual response. This was purely choice. He was choosing to be vulnerable to her. Perhaps his former state was not a ruse, but one of the many things they did not understand about his species.

Kaavi stood down. He was visibly relieved. He staggered slightly. She leaned in and sniffed him. He tensed as her nose touched his chest, but he did not try to escape.

His skin was colder and dryer than it was the day before. And she heard a rumble in his belly. Then she understood. He was thirsty and hungry and cold.

 _Not to mention afraid._

She picked the blanket up off the floor and draped it over his shoulders. He wrapped it tightly around his shivering form. They had realized that humans wore clothing because they had no scales or enough fur to shield them from the elements. And this was one was without any protection except his thin, human skin.

"How do you survive?" she asked. Of course, he had no idea what she was saying. He just stared at her with those strange, mammal eyes.

Kaavi reached down and scooped him up into her arms. He tensed up again, but he didn't fight her. He kept the blanket wrapped tight around him. She could sense his body temperature rising slightly as he was pressed against her.

Food would be a bit more complicated.

Of course, word of what Kaavi had done would have spread across the council. It had probably made it all the way to Greel by now. But she still didn't relish the thought of carrying a human through the crowded corridors. There was no point in hiding him. It would only be a sign of weakness and cause the whispers to become louder. She didn't dare leave him without fearing for his life. And it would be a sign of weakness to not stand boldly with her decision. No, it would be best to take him with her to get food.

She kept her posture confident and strong as she came from the healers chambers and into the main passages. Every dragon stopped what it was doing and stared.

Kaavi had never heard a public passage become so quiet. The human may not have had any idea what was happening, but he made himself as small as possible in his blanket as he pressed against Kaavi. She held him tightly as she approached the nearest food vendor.

"High One." The vendor greeted as he bared his throat. She could sense his fear as his eyes flicked down to the tiny bundle in her arms.

"Do you wish to see it?" Kaavi asked.

"Is… is it safe?" he asked. A small and curious crowd had gathered.

"He was injured when I found him. Presumably by his own people. He had not challenged anyone and when he woke this morning, he did what no other human has ever done and paid me respect."

The crowd gasped. There were murmurs among them.

"It is still human." Sneered a voice in the crowd.

"And Mek of Sel was a dragon." Said Kaavi "Do you wish to be judged by her actions?"

The crowd recoiled at the mention of that name.

A young, gray dragon, nearly half height, curiously approached. It must have come alone because no parent would have allowed such boldness.

Kaavi lowered herself to a sitting position and brought the human to eye level with the youth. She moved very slowly, so as not to startle him. She knew this was a risk. It could all fall apart very quickly. But she felt it. The pull she couldn't explain. This was the right thing to do.

The human's heart was pounding. His adrenaline was pumping through his system. But despite that, he was staying surprisingly calm in her arms. Kaavi took a piece of gola fruit that was the kind the other humans were sometimes found eating. She took a bite, and then lowered it to him. It took both his small hands to grasp it. He looked up at Kaavi, and she gently nudged it towards his face. He slowly took a bite.

The crowd gasped. A dragon had never shared food with a human before. He paused mid chew, but Kaavi nudged it towards him again and he took another bite.

She sensed his body responding to the food. He was so hungry. It must have taken a lot of self-control to not just attack and devour the fruit. She took another piece for herself and casually ate it. The crowd was getting more curious and less afraid. It was working.

Kaavi looked at the young dragon. "Bring some water." She said.

The youth obeyed and brought a small bowl of water. Small for the dragons anyway. It was larger than the human's face.

"It's alright." Said Kaavi "You can come closer."

The young girl was within reaching distance of the human. He stopped eating and looked at the girl. Kaavi opened her hand and the human put the partially eaten piece of fruit in it. The child brought the bowl closer to him and he slowly reached out and took it with both hands and drank. Kaavi felt the spike of excitement and curiosity in the girl.

"I've never seen one up close." She said.

"What do you think?" asked Kaavi.

"It's smaller than I thought. And it's not so scary like this. It's kinda cute. Like a baby elb."

Kaavi laughed. The tension in the crowd was fading. There was excited chatter flickering through the group. Then she felt it. Someone was displeased. She had anticipated that. It actually took much longer than she thought. But it was time to leave on a high note.

"Thank you." She said to the vendor as she made the last of her order. One of the merchants' young would bring it to her chambers. It had gone better than she had hoped, but she also knew Greel was still on her way.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Dirk was nauseous. They had forced him to drink some horrible, green liquid before they scanned him. They said it made the scans clearer. It tasted like cough medicine filtered through old socks. Then they sealed him into what could only be described as a silver coffin and he spent hours trapped in the tiny space with no light or outside noise. Then they sent him back to his cell. Amanda was already there.

"I'm surprised they haven't separated us." Said Dirk "Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, but…"

"They know I'm more powerful with the Rowdies." She said "They don't see us being together as a threat." She was sitting on the cot with her knees up and her arms wrapped around her shins. "They know I'm useless without them."

"That's not true." Said Dirk "You're very useful. If I had to make a list of the most useful people I've ever met, you would be top three. Easily."

"I can't use my powers without them." She said.

"But," said Dirk "that first time you called Todd when you were trapped here, that was on your own."

"That was a fluke." She said "I don't know how I did it. And the second time it was because of something they did to me. I had no control over it."

"You could try now." Said Dirk "Try and call Todd. Or Farah. You could help guide them back in to save us!"

"I've tried!" exclaimed Amanda "Over and over again! It's not working." She paused a moment and then added quietly "Maybe it's because they really are dead."

Dirk felt that thing in the pit of his stomach that he felt whenever that particular thought floated into his mind.

"No." he said "That's not it. They're alive. They have to be. Please keep trying." He put his hand on her shoulder. "For me."

She turned her big, brown eyes towards him. "Fine. I'll keep trying. But I'm not going to tell them how to save us."

"Then what will you tell them?"

"I'm going to tell them to save themselves."

* * *

Todd had no idea what he was eating, but he was very thankful to be eating it. He didn't know if it was actually good or it was just because he was starving, but it was unbelievably delicious.

He was also very thankful to be in a private room and out of that crowded, indoor marketplace. He wasn't sure what had happened back there. The tension was thick when they walked in. At first everyone seemed afraid of him, but by the end, he half expected the little dragon to pet him like a cat. He realized that if the humans he'd encountered thus far in this dimension were any indication, these folks had a very lousy group of humanity to base an opinion on.

The food he'd been offered was messy, and by the time he had finished his meal, his face and hands were sticky. He'd even accidently spilled some on his chest. Napkins clearly weren't a thing here, and he was afraid it might be disrespectful to wipe off on the blanket Green had given him.

Shortly after he was finished, an enormous green and purple dragon brought in a bowl of water the size of a bathtub. Green lifted Todd up and placed him in the bowl. The water was warm, and he washed himself off. When he was done, Green scooped him out of the bath and handed him another blanket, which was apparently supposed to be used as a towel.

Another dragon, who had almost the same shade of scales as Green, brought in his clothes. They had been washed and dried, but he could still see the stains from Farah's blood.

"Where is she?" he said to himself.

Green cocked her head. It responded to the tone of Todd's voice, but had no more comprehension of the words than Todd had of their strange, dragon language. He couldn't even imitate or really describe most of the sounds.

One of the little, maroon dragons came into the chambers. It was carrying a bowl of that weird, sour grass that they'd shoved in Todd's mouth when he first arrived. Green took the grass and began to chew it.

Then another maroon dragon led in a third dragon. It's size and body type was very similar to Green, but it had light blue scales. It also had a horrible and painful looking gash in its side. Green spit the chewed grass into the bowl, and the maroon ones scooped it out with their hands and began packing it into the wound. The blue dragon sagged a bit from the obvious relief.

 _It's medicine._ Todd thought. He guessed it had to be chewed by dragons of a similar type in order to be effective, otherwise the maroon ones would have probably done it themselves.

Todd looked at the process and began to wonder why they had forced him to chew it. He had no injuries, and they had flown it away as soon as he'd spit it out. Maybe they wanted to study it or…

The it hit him. _Farah._

Could it be? Had Farah been brought alive and they were trying to heal her? The hope rose up inside him. She was alive, or at least had been.

Green turned to him, seeming to sense that he had something on his mind.

"Farah!" said Todd "Is she alive? Where is she?"

He knew they couldn't understand him, but he didn't know how to ask through interspecies charades. Then an idea hit him. He pointed to the grass, and then to the blood stains on his shirt.

Green and the maroon dragons spoke to each other. Then Green reached out towards Todd and Todd climbed into Greens arms as they flew to another chamber.

Todd was both hopeful and terrified. What if she was dead?

 _But what if she's not?_

They went into a room that was dimly lit and smelled like incense. Todd saw the dark blue dragon that had been with Green on the roof. It was laying curled up in a nest. Green said something to it, and the blue dragon uncurled and stepped away from the nest. There, laying in the center of the nest, was Farah.

"Farah!" Todd cried as he bounded out of Green's arms and climbed into the nest. This startled the maroon dragons that had been quietly working in the room.

Todd knelt next to her. For a split second, he thought she was dead. Then her eyes fluttered open. Todd was so relieved he nearly burst into tears.

"Todd?" she said weakly.

"It's me." He said "I'm here. Sorry it took so long. Are you alright?"

"I've been better." She said "Are all the nurses here dragons or did I just lose a lot of blood?"

"We're in some sort of dragon colony." He said.

"I thought they killed everyone they encountered." Said Farah. She made a pained face as she tried to shift her weight.

"I think we may be the first exceptions to that rule."

"Why?" she asked "Why are they helping us?"

"I think it's because we didn't attack them. I mean think about the people here. If that's all they've encountered, they must think humans are monsters."

Farah nodded. "Not exactly a great sampling of our species."

"And too, I noticed this thing they do where they show their necks as like a salute or something."

"I've seen that too." She said.

"Well, when Green flipped out on me, I did that and it seemed to make everything ok. I think they just wanted to know that we could be reasoned with and won't just kill and destroy whatever we encounter."

Farah sucked air in through her teeth.

"Are you in a lot of pain?" Todd asked.

"Not as much as I should be all things considered. But I'm not doing so well." She pushed the blanket away from her right shoulder and Todd saw several serious looking green veins shooting out from around the bullet hole. He was so horrified he couldn't even respond.

"It's some sort of infection." She said "I guess the bacteria here is pretty brutal. And it keeps getting worse. I can't move much."

Todd took her hand. "We'll figure it out. These… doctors… they're going to heal you. And then you're going to hatch one of your genius Farah plans and we'll rescue Amanda and Dirk and the Rowdies and we'll solve the case and go home and…" his voice caught. He couldn't speak. He couldn't sit there and watch Farah die, but he felt powerless to do anything to help.

Farah reached up and put her hand on his cheek. Her eyes were fluttering. She was tired. One of the dragon doctors gently put its hand on Todd's arm and gestured that it was time for him to leave. He didn't want to, but he knew he'd just be in the way. He leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"I'm coming back." He said "You're going to get home safe."

Her eyes had closed. His heart was breaking. She'd saved his life so many times. Couldn't he save her this time?

Green led him out of the hospital chamber and Todd walked slowly beside it. Green nudged him gently with its nose. Todd guessed it was meant to comfort him.

"Thanks." Said Todd in a quiet voice.

Green pressed its head against Todd's chest, and Todd wrapped his arms around it in a gentle embrace. Somehow, he had a feeling Green knew how he felt. Without meaning to, Todd began to cry. He was letting so many people down. Virtually everyone he loved was in danger while he wandered around Dragontown with no plan and no way to communicate. He had to do something.

Suddenly, a large, orange dragon burst into the room and roared so loudly that it knocked Todd over. Before he could get up, Green was standing over him in a protective stance. The orange dragon was growling and baring its teeth. Its beady, reptilian eyes were locked on Todd. He didn't need to speak dragon to know that it had come to kill him.

* * *

Amanda was having trouble catching her breath. She had gotten used to the Rowdies feeding off her pararibulitis attacks. It had been a long time since she had felt the full force of one. She'd been strapped down and covered in sensors as her entire body was shattered. Even now that it was over and she was back in her cell with Dirk holding her, she couldn't seem to shake it.

"Stop fighting us, Amanda." The doctor had said "This doesn't have to be so unpleasant."

But she refused to do anything to help these monsters that murdered her brother. She mentally kicked herself.

 _We don't know he's dead._

She was so tired. They allowed her and Dirk little time to rest, and a large portion of that was spent huddled together comforting each other.

"Could you sense them at all?" asked Dirk.

Amanda shook her head. "No. And I'm afraid they'll see them too if I'm hooked up to those machines when it happens."

 _That's assuming they're alive._

She kicked herself again.

She and Dirk rocked back and forth together on the floor of their cell. She wasn't sure which of them started it, but it was soothing somehow. Then she looked down and noticed the bruise on his wrist.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Rather not talk about it, if you don't mind." Said Dirk.

She buried her face against his chest. He smelled like that gross antibacterial soap they were given for their showers. Apparently the germs in the dimension could be brutal. But at least they were allowed to bathe.

"Is your holistic thingy saying anything?" she asked.

She could feel his shoulders slump.

"No. The Universe has been regrettably silent since our capture. Maybe it's for the best. It makes me harder to study."

He cringed.

"We have to get out." She said.

* * *

When the human began signaling to see the other, Kaavi was unsure how to respond. She had Regg take the female to the healers and stay with her to keep her safe, but no one expected her to live. The fight within her tiny body was as strong and any dragon, but the infection had spread, and she was not going to make it much longer.

Kaavi briefly considered pretending to not know what he was asking. Would it do any good to allow him to see her so close to death?

She could feel the turmoil inside him as he sat with the female. She remembered the pain of watching her parents pass. She half expected him to refuse when they pulled him away, but he seemed to have a grasp that the healers needed space to work. The emotional pain was rolling off of him like a thick fog as they walked.

Kaavi gently nudged him with her nose. The action surprised him, but he seemed to understand the meaning. She pressed her head against him and he embraced her.

Then Greel burst in.

Her sister roared and stomped and Kaavi immediately stood over the human to protect him from her wrath.

"You dare bring that thing into our home?!" she snarled.

"It was my decision to make!" boomed Kaavi.

"Two of them!" Said Greel venomously "A male and female. Planning to breed them and let their little goblins overrun us from the inside?"

"They were injured. The humans in the tower sent them to us to kill, as if we were wild animals! I will take no part in that."

"Then leave them to die." Said Greel with a sneer.

"They are innocent! They have shown nothing but respect."

"They will kill you and steal your hide as a trophy!"

"Your opinion is not needed." Said Kaavi with finality.

"How could your judgement be so skewed?" Greel asked "Let me guess. You had one of your 'feelings' that you love to use as an excuse for your poor decisions. What did Father call it? Your ability to see the interconnectedness of all things?" She spat "Nonsense! Foolishness! Give me your little pet and I will dispose of it properly."

"He is under my protection. Anyone who attempts to harm him faces death!"

"You would choose a human over your own blood?"

Kaavi stood tall. "I believe I already answered that."

"Very well." Greel hissed. "I will enjoy using your weakness to remove you from my place in the council."

Greel let out one more menacing growl aimed at the human, and then flew away.

Kaavi quickly scooped up the human and flew him to her private chambers. She was scared. Greel could use this to turn her people. She knew her sister would try it. Though she had hoped it would be over something easier to defend than a human.

Her heart was pounding. She needed a plan.

Then the human reached up and placed his hand gently on her nose. It was an odd and unexpected gesture, but she could feel the meaning of it. He was trying to reassure her. He trusted her. He believed in her. His life had been threatened and instead of cowering, he was comforting.

Kaavi touched her forehead to his.

"I'm glad I spared you." She said aloud. "I will figure this out. I will keep you safe. I promise."

It was late and she was tired. The rush of adrenaline had worn off and they were both feeling exhausted. There was nothing left to be done that night and they needed to be rested for the next day. She wrapped a blanket around the human and curled up in her nest with him safely nestled against her.

"I won't let anyone hurt you." She said.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

As soon as he awoke, the human pointed to the blood stains on his shirt. He wanted to see the female.

Kaavi pushed some food towards him. "Eat first."

He was clearly disappointed, but she could also sense his hunger, so he ate.

Kaavi decided to take the long route to their destination. She had to normalize his presence if there was any hope of getting the people to accept her decision.

A crowd had gathered outside the royal chambers. It seemed everyone wanted a glimpse of the human.

He tensed at the sight of all the dragons. Kaavi gently stroked his hair as reassurance as she stepped out with him in her arms. She tried to look confident and as if she was proudly showing him off, but the reality was that she feared what some people might try to do to him if she set him down. No one was bold enough to attack him in her arms. On the ground however, she could see someone impulsively striking him dead and facing the sentence. His body was so fragile that it would not take much.

There was soft chatter as they stared at the strange and once feared creature. She could sense that they feared him far less. Her plan was working.

Kaavi spotted the child who had given him water from the day before. She was in a group of five youths. Kaavi signaled her to approach. The other children were not far behind.

"I remember you." She said "What is your name?"

"Qilla." She said. Then she looked down at the human. "Does he remember me?"

Kaavi could tell he did. "How about you find out?" She said as she lowered the human to Qilla's height.

The youth slowly reached out her hand towards him. He looked at the hand, then up at Kaavi. She nudged him slightly. He looked back at Qilla and reached out and put the palm of his hand against hers.

Kaavi could hear the gasps and squeals from the other children. Qilla was delighted.

"He has so many fingers." She said as she marveled at his five slim fingers as opposed to the dragons' three, thick claws.

"Is it a baby?" asked the small boy closest to Qillas' side. He was barely more than a hatchling himself.

"He's fully grown." Said Kaavi "Humans are far smaller than we seem to think."

"I thought they were dangerous." Said another boy "Mom says I shouldn't go near them."

"I'll bet she warns you about strangers too. But that does not mean that all dragons are bad." Said Kaavi.

"Can it talk?" asked another child.

"That is the question, isn't it?"

Kaavi felt the tension rise in her body at the sound of Greel's voice.

"Are you here to challenge me?" Kaavi asked.

Greel laughed. It was a very unpleasant sound.

"Challenge you? I, like this curious and forgiving crowd, can see you are correct. This human is unlike any we have ever encountered. Despite every other member of his species slaughtering our people and destroying our land, he seems as harmless as a well fed puhg."

Something was wrong. What was Greel doing?

"It seems," Greel continued "that your dear little pet has won both your heart and the hearts of our people. What kind of sister would I be if I did not support that?"

There were sounds of approval in the crowd.

"In fact," Greel added, silencing the crowd. "I'm so moved at the arrival of this spectacular anomaly, that I would like to nominate him for citizenship."

Kaavi went rigid.

 _No._

"Don't you agree, Sister?" asked Greel.

Kaavi had to think quickly. "It will take some time to prepare."

"Oh, but we're in luck. I've managed to bring one of the Grand Elders with me. You remember Cha."

The white dragon covered in black tattoos emerged from the shadows. He had always supported Greel over Kaavi. Of course he would be there.

"We must discuss the possibility of making a human a citizen." Said Kaavi "It will take some time to deliberate with the council and take a vote."

Greel smiled. "Excellent. And, as our law demands, while we deliberate, the humans will be in our holding."

Kaavi was starting to panic. If the female was taken from the healers, she'd die almost instantly. And Greel could get to the male in the holdings. She was too well connected.

Kaavi looked down at the human. He had no idea what was happening and she had no way to warn him. She was desperate for an alternative, but she could not without breaking their laws. That would open her to challenge. Even if she won, Greel would have the humans killed before Kaavi could stop her. While the people were warming to the human, there was no way they would tolerate such a deliberate disregard of their laws from such a new leader. This was their only chance.

"I'm sorry." She whispered as she set him gently on the ground.

He looked confused and a bit afraid, but he stood his ground as Kaavi stepped away. He was staring at her. His eyes were wide as he tried to figure out what was happening.

Cha approached him.

Cha was enormous, as was typical for the Grand Elders. The human was tense and aware as the massive dragon approached him. The human slowly lifted his head and bared his throat in respect. Kaavi felt a swell of pride that he had honored her and her people in such a public way. She heard murmurs around her of the people being in awe of his respect. This would certainly strengthen Kaavi's argument.

Cha was momentarily taken aback, but his hate for all humans soon flashed across him. He lunged forward and knocked the human to the ground, pinning the human on his back with one of his massive hands.

The human was trapped, but did not fight it at first. He must have known he had no chance of fight or escape. Perhaps he thought that if he did not act aggressive, that the dragon would not as well.

Then Cha leaned in and began to do his work. Kaavi watched in horror as the human began to gasp and shake. Then a terrible sound escaped the human's mouth and didn't stop.

 _Please._ Kaavi thought. _Please pull through._

* * *

Todd couldn't stop screaming.

The white dragon had pinned him down and stared at him with red, snakelike eyes. The eyes cut through his brain like razors. Todd tried to look away, but he couldn't. He was locked into that painful gaze. He couldn't even blink. Green had left him to die.

 _I failed._ He thought. _Amanda. Farah. Dirk. The Rowdies. We're all going to die because I got us caught._

He only stopped thinking that because he stopped being able to think at all.

Then the razors were ripped out of his brain.

He was shaking. Everything was painful and raw. The white dragon was gone, and Todd was being lifted and carried. He couldn't tell what had happened, he just felt exhausted and hurt all over.

Todd drifted in and out of consciousness. He could feel a cold compress on his forehead. Sometimes he could feel scaly hands touching him. On the few occasions he opened his eyes, he could see Green standing over him and looking concerned.

And voices. He could hear voices. Men and women. He couldn't tell what they were saying, but they were getting less muffled each time he woke up.

He was starting to hurt less. The tearing pain in his head went to a painful throb, then to a manageable ache. Green was sometimes stroking his hair, which seemed to help too.

Todd woke again and felt a bit more aware. The pain had dulled, but he still felt very weak. He couldn't have stood up if his life depended on it. He groaned and closed his eyes again.

"He seems a bit better this time."

Todd opened his eyes. Had he imagined that voice?

"How long until we know?"

"No idea. Nothing quite like this has ever been attempted."

Todd couldn't see anyone except the dragons.

"I'm hallucinating." He muttered.

The dragons froze.

"Did… did he just say something?"

Todd looked up at them. "Can you understand me?"

He heard a gasp.

"Yes!" cried a female voice "We can!"

He realized the voice came from Green.

A maroon dragon shook its head. "This is unprecedented."

"What happened?" said Todd "What's going on? Why can we understand each other?"

Green reached down and cupped his face. "My name is Kaavi. I am the leader of the Knelu Council of Dragons. What is your name?"

"Todd." He said "My name is Todd."

"Todd. You are now a citizen of the Knelu Council of Dragons and granted the same rights and protection as any of our dragon citizens!"

Todd stared at her. "I… what?"

* * *

Dirk was exhausted. They had put him on a treadmill and forced him to run until he literally collapsed. His legs felt like they were made of jelly. Farah's death run a few days prior suddenly didn't seem so bad.

"Stress test inconclusive." Said a tech to Dr. Matiss.

The doctor looked frustrated.

"Are we positive he is one of them?" asked the tech. "We've seen no evidence of any abilities. Perhaps it was bad intel."

"No." said Matiss. He'd dropped his friendly façade completely. "Bring him to Control Room B."

Dirk was placed in a wheelchair. They strapped him in, which seemed silly to him since he was too exhausted to even walk, let alone run away. They took him to the basement of the facility. Just like every other floor, there were no windows. But this was different. This place felt darker and more confined. It was as if this was the place where a person's humanity went to die. Dirk had felt almost nothing from the universe since he'd arrived, but everything in him screamed that this was a place he did not want to be.

They wheeled him to a heavy, metallic door. When it opened, Dirk saw computer panels everywhere. They were bright and blinking and cast an eerie glow, but there was nothing that would explain what Dirk was feeling.

Then he saw it.

Laying on a table in the center of the room was a man. His eyes were closed, and he was naked except for a sheet draped over his lower half. He was covered in wires that attached to machines and there was an oxygen mask on his face and IVs in his arms. He was thinner and paler than his picture, but Dirk recognized him instantly.

"Travis…" he said, unable to hide his horror.

"We really tried with this one." Said Dr. Matiss "Probably harder than we should have. We never wanted it to come to this. His ability to detect and open portals to other worlds was so unique and useful. He brought us here willingly. He even explored with us and helped us design this base. But then, he started getting an attitude. He didn't like what we were doing once we set up camp. When we tried to capture the dragons to study, a few died in the process. We still took them to study their bodies. It helps us understand them so that we can one day capture and study them with less lethal results. Even when the dragons killed some of our people, he still objected to our use of deadly force. We tried to reason with him, but he stopped cooperating and it had to come to this. We use his ability without his input now."

Dr. Matiss sighed. "Pity, really. He could have been quite comfortable here."

Dirk couldn't speak. Fear was pulsing inside him.

"He's the only way out, you know." Said Dr. Matiss "We use him to keep the portal open and he's programmed to only open this side if we tell him to. Even if you did escape, you'd be trapped here and eaten by the dragons like your friends were." He leaned down until he was face to face with Dirk.

"We've tried the easy way and are getting tired of your lack of cooperation. You and your little girlfriend or whatever are rapidly heading towards this." He said as he gestured across the nightmare room. "Just let me know if this is what you want. It can be easily arranged."

Dirk sat in stunned silence as he was wheeled back to his cell and unceremoniously dumped onto the floor. Amanda was already there and rushed towards him.

"What happened?" she asked as she sat next to him on the floor.

Dirk threw his arms around her and whispered "Find Todd and Farah. We have to escape."

"What did you see?" asked Amanda.

"Travis. They did the same thing they did to you when they made you call Todd and are using his powers without his input."

A horrified look passed over Amanda's face. "What kind of powers?"

"He's the one that can open portals." said Dirk.

"Shit! It makes sense now! I overheard them talking about using something to open a portal to trap the dragons. They're actually using him to do that?"

"He's hooked up to all these machines and..." Dirk shuttered. Then he turned his eyes to Amanda. "I still believe they are alive. You have to find Todd and Farah and we have to get out before things get much, much worse."

* * *

Todd was in absolute awe. He still hadn't recovered all of his strength, but he and Kaavi had been talking since he woke up. He explained that he and the other humans were from another dimension. One without dragons. And he told them about how the other humans had captured his sister and about the rescue mission with Dirk and Farah and how the humans here had tried to kill them.

He also explained his disease and why he had been in that state when she found him, and warned her of what could happen if and when he had another attack.

She explained to him what those humans had done to her people and explained Greels attempt to kill him. The white dragon was part of an ancient order. Back when the different types of dragons lived separately, they could not communicate. A way was found to link them so that they could speak to each other. It had never been attempted with a non dragon. She explained how Greel used this old law to try and weaken Kaavi's position so that she could kill Todd and Farah. Kaavi apologized for what he had endured and confessed that she had no idea what it would even do to him. In rare cases, the attempt to link someone was fatal. Greel's plan had backfired spectacularly when Todd actually became connected to the dragons. He now had the same rights and protection as any dragon. It would be much harder for Greel to have him killed without hurting her own claim to the throne.

"I need to talk to Farah." He said "She needs to know what's happening."

Kaavi looked sad. Todd felt dread rise up inside him.

"What is it?" he said.

"She has gotten worse. She longer wakes. I'm afraid she does not have long."

"Take me to her. Please." Said Todd.

Kaavi carried him to Farah. The blue dragon was still guarding her. Kaavi lowered Todd into the nest next to Farah. He took her hand.

"Hey, Farah." He said with tears in his eyes. "It's me. Todd. Um… a lot has happened since I was in here before. I'm an honorary dragon or something like that." He tried to force a chuckle to lighten the dark cloud hanging in the room, but there was no joy left inside him. He stared down at her and began to cry. "I'm sorry I couldn't save you. I owe you my life a hundred times over and I couldn't…" he didn't finish. He looked up at Kaavi. "Isn't there anything else we can try? Even if it's crazy? The communication thing worked on me, maybe something far fetched can work on her."

"I'm sorry." Said a maroon dragon "We have done all we can."

"Dragonblood." Said the blue dragon.

Everyone turned to him.

"Even if we had access," said the maroon dragon "we have no idea what it will do to her."

"It will probably kill her." Said the blue one "But it won't make things worse."

"Dragonblood?" said Todd.

"It is an herb." Explained Kaavi "We use it on our injured warriors in extreme circumstances."

"Why are we just talking about it now?" asked Todd.

"It's not that simple." Said Kaavi "It is rare and precious. Very few of our people are ever given access. To give it to a creature not part of our council could ignite a civil war. I am sorry but we cannot even attempt to give it to her without…" her voice trailed off as her eyes widened.

"What?" said Todd.

"Giving it to a stranger of another species would be unthinkable, but to give it to a new member of our council as a gift to bridge relations with a new species…."

Todd's eyes widened. He burst out laughing. Greel's plan really had backfired spectacularly.

"Go!" ordered Kaavi to a maroon dragon. "Bring it now!"

The dragon flew off.

Kaavi turned to Todd.

"Listen carefully, she is not a member of our council, but you are. This is a gift to you. I cannot give it to her without causing an uprising."

"So I have to give it to her. Got it."

"It's not that simple." Said Kaavi "This is a gift for you. To just give it to another person would be disgraceful and offensive to your new people."

"Then what do I do? He asked "I can't just keep it from her."

"I said it could not go to just some other human." She looked at Todd "She is your mate, correct?"

Todd was taken aback. "Um… Uh… We have been in a romantic relationship of some sort. I don't know if I'd describe it as…"

"Todd," she cut him off and spoke very slowly and deliberately. "the law permits you to give it to your mate."

"We're married and have five kids." He said.

"Excellent." She said "Then there is nothing in our laws that would prevent you from sharing this gift with her."

The maroon dragon returned and handed Todd a vial with red liquid in it. It raised its head and bared its throat. Todd realized he was being saluted.

"Oh!" he said "Um… thanks?" he was unsure how to appropriately respond.

"Now," said Kaavi "only you can administer the gift. Put a little in each wound and the remainder in her mouth."

Todd obeyed. "Now what?" he asked as the last drop left the bottle.

"We wait." Said the blue dragon. "There is no way to know how this will affect her."

A medium sized, green dragon entered and exposed its neck. "High One." He said "Greel has requested an audience."

Todd wondered why Kaavi wasn't responding, then he realized he couldn't hear them and everything was moving slowly.

 _Amanda._

The dragons turned towards him as Todd slumped down into the nest as he was once again pulled from his body.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Amanda opened her eyes and found herself behind the curtain of the universe. She'd forgotten how beautiful it was. And there, standing a few feet away, was her brother.

"Todd!" she cried as she raced over and embraced him. She was sobbing. "Is this real? Are you real? Are you alive? They told me you were dead! I've been searching for you and couldn't find you and I thought…"

"I'm ok." He said as he held her tightly. "Are you alright? Is Dirk?"

"We have to get out." Said Amanda "These people are doing some serious supervillain shit here."

"I know." He said "I've sorta befriended some dragons. They've been telling me what those people did to them."

"You… befriended dragons?"

"Yeah. They kind of adopted me."

"I'm not even going to ask." Then she pulled out of the hug and looked at him "How is Farah? Is she alright too?"

Todd looked sad. "She's hurt. Really hurt. They're trying something, but it's a last ditch effort kind of thing. We really don't know."

"Shit."

"I know."

"We have to get out of here. And get Farah out of here and to a real doctor that knows how to treat humans." She said.

"I agree. How do we get you out of there? How do we leave this place?"

"How much pull do you have with these dragons?" Amanda asked.

"Well, they made me a citizen and gave me a sacred gift."

Amanda blinked. "So I'm gonna go ahead and say a lot of pull." She took a breath. "I have a plan, but I need the help of your dragon brethren."

* * *

Kaavi felt the shift. She didn't know what it meant, but she felt it. She turned and watched Todd slump over and collapse in the nest.

She rushed towards him. His eyes were open, but he clearly wasn't seeing anything.

"What's happening?" she cried.

The healers were gathered around him. They were perplexed.

Kaavi was panicking. What was happening to him? Was it a delayed response from what Cha had done to him? Was it the strange condition he had told her about? She put her hand on his cheek and felt the pull of the universe.

"I'm taking him to my chambers."

"Are you sure that is wise, High One?" a healer asked.

"If you have an idea of what is happening or how to treat it, I will leave him in your care. If you do not, I will take him."

No one responded, so she gently cradled him in her arms and flew him back to her nest.

She was scared she was wrong. What if her decision turned out to be a fatal error? Was he about to die in her arms? His pulse was faint, and his breathing was shallow. She had closed his eyes to keep them from being dried out, but also because there was an eeriness to his unseeing eyes. What had once been warm and expressive had become cold and vacant.

She sat there with him and stared intently, afraid that if she so much as blinked she would miss something that could be a clue to save him.

He gasped.

Kaavi hardly dared to breathe.

"K… Kaavi…" he stammered.

"I'm here." She said as she stroked his hair. "You're in my nest. You're safe."

"No." he said "We're not safe. We have to do something."

He seemed disoriented.

"Lay still." She said "You've had some sort of episode. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine." He said as he tried to sit up. "Put me down. I'm fine."

She hesitated, but she set him on his feet. He took two wobbly steps before he slumped over and she caught him.

"What's happening?" asked Kaavi "You were in that state for nearly half an hour."

"Amanda. My sister. She called me. And she saw something. And Dirk…"

Todd seemed to get lost in his thought. Whatever had happened to him, he was still recovering. His face was pinched in concentration and his fists were balled up tightly.

"I can't think!" He said through gritted teeth "All my thoughts are jumbled."

"Breathe." She said "You're safe. Calm down and take a deep breath. The thoughts will come together soon."

He filled his lungs with as much air as they could hold.

"Good." She said "Now, slowly release."

He did, and even his posture changed.

"Again."

He repeated the action. She could sense his body making the shift. He was recovering.

"Now." She said as she faced him. "Explain to me what just happened."

* * *

Todd and Kaavi had been discussing Amanda's plan for nearly an hour. They were comparing everything they knew about the human structure, the defenses, and the expected responses of the people inside.

Between the recent citizen making brain trauma he had endured, and the even more recent out of body chat he had with his sister, Todd was still a little unsteady on his feet, though he could finally walk on his own. His brain had cleared and he was thinking sharp again.

"Are you sure about the portals?" Kaavi asked "If they control when and where they open, that complicates everything."

"Dirk saw the man they're using to control the gateways. And Amanda heard that they are trying to work out a way to open a pocket dimension to trap your people and study them. Since they haven't been able to capture anyone alive, they think this is the best way. We have to launch a surprise attack before they can attempt it. It's your… our… peoples best chance."

"Why do they want to hurt us?" asked Kaavi.

"Because humans are assholes." He said "I'm sorry you ever had to encounter us."

"Not all humans." She said.

"Yeah, well, I apologize for the entirety of my species." He shook his head. "We have to stop them. I think we can do it, but there are so many variables. We need Farah. She's so much better at this."

Kaavi lowered her gaze. Todd looked up at her. "What?" he said.

"You admire her."

"Well, yeah. I mean, she's amazing. It's too bad she isn't the one you got to know. She's the best that humanity has to offer. She would have figured this all out by now and kicked all those people out the portal they came from."

"Come." Said Kaavi "Let us go check on her progress."

She lifted Todd, but instead of holding him in her arms, she placed him on the spot where her neck met her back. He held on tightly to one of the hard, spiny parts that came up from her spinal cord. Then she flew them to the healers' chambers.

 _I'm flying on the back of a dragon._

The thought didn't seem real, but there he was.

When they arrived at their destination, she placed Todd in the nest next to Farah. The blue dragon, Regg, was still standing guard.

"How is she?" Todd asked.

"Much improved." Said a male healer. "We do believe she will survive."

Todd sighed with relief. He reached over and touched her face. "You always were the strongest person I've ever met."

"She will be hungry when she wakes." Said Kaavi "Come, let us collect some food for her." She reached over to Todd.

He went to Kaavi and let her lift him again onto her back. They flew to the marketplace. Todd wanted to be there when Farah woke up, but he also knew that his hanging out in the chambers made the healers' uncomfortable. Besides, there really wasn't anything he could do. He hoped that they would let him visit her again that evening. He thought about the plan and wondered if they could hold it off long enough for Farah to heal to the point where she could help them with their strategy. He knew he would feel roughly 1,000% more confident if they had her seal of approval.

The market was below them and they were descending when something slammed into Kaavi. She was thrown sideways and Todd went flying off of her back and landed in a bin of grain. He looked up just in time to see Kaavi hit the ground.

"No!" Todd cried as he scrambled from the bin.

"You call yourself a dragon!" Greel roared "You waste our resources and commiserate day and night with a human!"

Kaavi pushed herself up to standing and roared in response. "He is a citizen of the Knelu Council of Dragons at your insistence! Do not twist it now!"

"If his kind were capable of being more than violent, barking animals, why have they not pursued communication? How much dragon blood has been spilled due to their unwillingness to even try to speak with us?!"

"Stop!" Todd cried as he fought every instinct in his body and ran towards the angry dragons. "These humans, we're not all like them! We're from a different world. Our world is full of humans, both good and bad. Unfortunately, it's the bad ones who set up camp here."

"So you count yourself among the bad?" she sneered.

"No! They captured my sister. They're hurting her, and I crossed worlds to save her! I want to help you too!"

"Why?" cried Greel "Why would you want to help us?"

"You mean besides Kaavi saving my life when the humans tried to kill me, and she spared me and Farah and made me a citizen? Besides the fact that I've met good people here that I care about and want to save from what those people have done? Well, I also kinda hate the people who hurt my loved ones and I want to banish them to where they can't hurt anyone again. Is that reason enough for you?"

He hadn't intended to say it with so much attitude, but he also didn't regret it. Greel was clearly not pleased, though the crowd that had gathered seemed to be listening.

"Most of the humans in that structure are bad and want to hurt you, but there are some that are trying to help you. Kaavi and I have been coming up with a plan to get those monsters out of your world and to a place where they can't hurt you anymore."

"Your pet uses such informal terms, _High One_." Greel sneered "I understand that you gave him some of our precious Dragonblood and he poured it out on a corpse."

"I presented our new citizen a gift to welcome him to our council, and he chose not to use it on himself to recover from the painful effects of what was done to him by Cha. Instead he chose to use it on his injured mate!"

"You have made compromising decisions since you rose to power." Growled Greel "Your people are divided. Many wish for new leadership!"

Todd realized that the crowd that had gathered around them was far more hostile than the last one. Greel was right about one thing. These people were divided.

"Who among you demand a duel?!" shouted Greel "Who demands their appointed leader prove her worth?!"

Todd watched in horror as dragon after dragon lifted its head in salute to Greel. It was about a third, which was apparently enough.

"Very well." Said Kaavi gravely. She looked at Todd with her deep purple eyes. He knew something was wrong. She knew it too, but seemed to have little choice. The two sisters stood facing each other as the crowd created a large circle for their fight. Todd ran to Kaavi.

"What do I do?" he asked.

"Nothing. Stay here, in sight. Greel will not kill you before a duel."

"She's up to something." Said Todd "Be careful."

Kaavi pressed the top of her head against Todd's chest.

"And you. She will not let a loss stop her from taking out her anger on you. Do not approach any dragon that saluted her."

Greel stood out in the clearing and shouted "I am Greel of the family of Mal and I stand to say that I am the rightful High One of the Knelu!"

Kaavi stood her full height and exclaimed "I am Kaavi of the line of Mal and I stand to say I am the rightful High One of the Knelu!"

They circled each other in the clearing and Greel charged. There was a blur of claws and tails and roars. Todd had not seen dragons in all their powerful and terrifying glory before. They were moving so fast, Todd almost didn't see it. Something was attached to Greel's stomach. Only someone so low to the ground would have been able to see it.

"She has something!" Todd cried, but no one could hear him over the noise.

Greel swung her tail under her belly and it came out with what appeared to be a metal tip that she plunged into Kaavi's side. It was enough that Greel was able to get the advantage and pinned Kaavi to the ground. Greel's jaws were clamped around Kaavi's neck, leaving her sister incapacitated and at her mercy.

"Victory!" shouted Cha, who had emerged from the crowd. He looked down at Kaavi. "Submit to your new leader or be killed to make way for the citizens of the council!"

"No." said Kaavi "I will not yield."

"Then you shall die." said Cha.

"No!" Todd screamed as he ran to his friend. "Greel was armed! It wasn't a fair fight!"

"It does not matter." Growled Cha "A fit leader would have been prepared for any circumstances! She did not have the foresight to even check her opponent for weapons. How can she be expected to lead our people when she neglects such simple procedure?!"

The crowd had become loud. They were arguing over what this meant and what should happen next. Those loyal to Kaavi and those loyal to Greel were at each other and Todd knew the civil war Kaavi was dreading would erupt if someone didn't do something.

Greel released her sister's neck. "I forfeit my right to her life! She is my sister. Though gravely misguided and an unfit leader, I choose to spare her life in the name of unity!"

Todd's anger burned. Greel didn't care about Kaavi, or even unity. She was just trying to get Kaavi's supporters on her side so that she could take over.

"Follow me and I will lead us into a new golden age of dragons!" She looked down at Todd.

"My heart is not hard, Small One. There is a place in this new world for even you. Acknowledge me as your true leader, and I will treat you as one of our own. You do not have to suffer the wrath we will unleash on your former people."

Todd stood as tall as he was able and approached Greel. "I salute the true leader of this council." And he turned to where Kavvi was laying on the ground and lifted his head and bared his throat.

The crowd was silent as they waited to see what would happen.

Greel's voice was calm, but her eyes were filled with fire as she said "Then you shall die for your choice of loyalty."

Greel launched herself at Todd and then something wrapped around him and lifted him into the air. Someone had grabbed him around his waist and had leaped over Greel and landed at the other end of the clearing. When his feet touched again, he tumbled onto the ground and tried to catch his breath as he heard murmurs and gasps of the stunned crowd. Todd looked up to see who had rescued him and he couldn't believe his eyes.

"Farah?!"

* * *

Farah had not planned on leaping into the center of a dragon street fight, but when she saw Todd in danger, she had no choice. She'd meant to be a bit gentler, and was concerned she may have actually hurt him during her rather dramatic rescue.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"I… yeah... But… you. How...?"

"I don't know." She said "I woke up like this. There were all these dragons running around and I heard this roaring outside and I heard your voice and I just ran to find you. I have no idea why I can do… this."

The orange dragon roared.

"Come on!" said Farah "We have to get out of here!" She was about to grab Todd and run, but she honestly had no idea how strong she was and was more than a little afraid of accidentally hurting him. Thankfully the dragons around them were giving them space.

"We can't!" said Todd "Greel is going to kill Kaavi and take over and…"

The orange dragon roared again.

"What's happening?" Farah asked.

"Um, short version. Orange one is the bad guy and wants to kill us. The green one on the ground over there is the good guy and wants to save us."

Suddently, the blue dragon that had been by Farah's side since the dragons arrived landed between her and the angry orange one.

"I think that one has been protecting me." Said Farah.

"That's Regg. He's loyal to Kaavi."

"Todd, you're going to have to back up a little and explain a few things."

"I'm going to have to back up?! You're the one who is suddenly Wonder Woman!"

The orange one roared again and the blue one, Regg apparently, made a noise in Todd's direction.

"Is she insane?!" Todd cried.

Orange roared again.

"What's going on?!" said Farah.

Todd blinked. "Wait, you can't understand them, can you?"

"No! How could I possibly understand them?" she blinked. "Wait, can you?"

Regg made a sound that Farah couldn't even describe

"Seriously?" said Todd to the blue dragon "I thought since you understood me and my language now that…"

Regg made another sound.

"Shit." Said Todd.

"What is happening?!" Farah asked.

"Um, long story. They did something to me and now I speak dragon. And it's apparently a mental link thing so they can't actually understand you."

"Why do we both suddenly have super powers?!" Farah exclaimed.

"Dragonblood." Said Todd "You were dying and we gave you Dragonblood to try and save you. It must have done more than that."

"You gave me blood from a dragon?!"

"It's a plant! We weren't even sure it would work."

Orange lunged towards Regg and howled.

"What are they saying?" asked Farah.

"Greel, the orange one, wants to challenge you because you took her kill."

"Challenge me?" said Farah "Like a fight?"

"She's not a citizen!" Todd shouted "You can't challenge her!"

Regg made a sound and Todd quietly said "Oh."

"What?" said Farah.

"I'm a citizen and they believe you are my mate so…"

"You're… what?"

"I know!" he said "The terminology is translating weird. And I don't even know how to explain what we have to humans. And…" he lowered his voice "it's also the only way I could give you the medicine without a civil uprising."

"You realize you're going to have to explain what the hell is going on in more detail when we're not surrounded by angry dragons, right?"

"Yeah."

"Ok." Said Farah "So she wants to challenge me to a physical fight."

"Yes." Said Todd.

"What are the rules?"

"Um… don't die. Greel fights dirty. That's the only reason she beat Kaavi."

"Stakes?"

"Winner is the High One of the Council."

Farah nodded. "I accept."

"You… what?"

"Tell them I accept."

"But…"

"I know her type. She's not the biggest, baddest monster I've ever faced. Tell her I accept."

Todd looked like he wanted to argue, but he just stared at her. Then he said "Are you sure?"

She took his hand and looked him in the eyes. "I'm sure."

Todd swallowed, then said "Farah of the Earth Realm accepts the challenge."

Shock washed over the crowd.

"She had a hidden weapon before." Said Todd "Watch out."

"Got it." Said Farah "Keep a safe distance. Stay close to Regg if you can."

Todd nodded and stood next to the blue dragon. Farah and Greel circled each other. Greel lunged and Farah leaped over her and landed on the other side like a cat leaping from tree to tree. Her movements felt so strange. Like a dream. She had been so in touch with her body and abilities, and now she literally had no idea what she could do. Apparently, it was time to find out.

Greel howled and lunged again. Everything seemed to move so slowly. Farah was able to dodge the charging dragon with such ease that she thought it had to be a trick. Surely it was pretending to be slow and going to attack her as she ran past. But that didn't happen.

 _My reflexes are just that fast…_

It was making the dragon angry. It made another pass and Farah ran behind it and raced up its tail and onto its back. She grabbed one of the spines on the back of its neck and leaped to the ground. She twisted its neck and dragged the dragon along with her and slammed its head into the ground. Greel pulled herself up and lunged at Farah. Going on pure instinct, Farah swung her fist and punched the dragon in the jaw. It's head snapped backwards and it collapsed to the ground.

There was hushed amazement in the crowd. Farah had more strength than even she anticipated, and she feared for a moment that she had killed her opponent. Then it coughed and spit blood and the crowd exploded as Regg and a large portion of the crowd began to cheer Greel's defeat.

Todd raced over and embraced her. Farah had been so shocked by her own strength that she was terrified to even hug him. After knocking out a dragon with her bare hands, Todd suddenly looked very fragile.

Regg and several other dragons lifted their heads to her and showed their necks. That included the green dragon, who had brought herself to standing.

"This green one," Said Farah "you say she wants to help us."

"Yes. And she's their rightful leader. Greel was trying to steal the throne."

"Give it back to her." Said Farah.

Todd nodded. "Farah of the Earth Realm relinquishes her claim as the High One of the Knelu Council to Kaavi of the family of Mal!"

The crowd exploded into celebration before everyone, including Todd and Farah, saluted Kaavi as the reinstated leader.

"We have so much to discuss." Said Farah.

"You have no idea." Said Todd.


	7. Chapter 7

**Dimensions and Dragons**

Chapter 7

Todd examined the fist sized dent in the boulder of the healing chamber.

"This is insane." He said.

"I sort of freaked out when I woke up." Said Farah "I had all this weird energy pulsing through me and I just jumped up and ended up accidently leaping above the dragons that were watching over me. They were startled and tried to grab me and of course we couldn't understand each other and I had to escape and I ran…"

"How did this rock get punched?" asked Todd.

"I'm not sure. It's all a bit of a blur. I was trying to find you and then when I heard your voice I followed it and you were about to be attacked by a giant, orange dragon and I still didn't know what was happening to me and…" she took a moment to breathe.

"So, all in all, a weird day." He said.

"Yeah. You could say that."

Todd reached for her hand, but she pulled away.

"Are you mad?" he asked "I know the Dragonblood idea was risky, but you were dying and I was scared and I didn't want to just do nothing and let you die and there was no way to check…"

"No." she said "It's not that."

"Then what?" he asked.

She hesitated. "I'm… I'm afraid I'll hurt you."

"Seriously?" he said.

"I accidently knocked out a dragon the size of a tank. No offense, but you're not looking all that sturdy right now."

Todd slowly moved towards her. "I trust you." He reached for her hand again. She let him take it this time, and he could somehow feel the energy and strength pulsing through her.

"How long will this last?" she asked.

"There're not sure. It's temporary. They think. I mean, you are the first human to try it so it's impossible to say for sure. For dragons, it does give some short term boosts to agility and strength. Nothing like suddenly being able to punch through a rock though."

"How about you?" she asked "What happened?"

"Extremely long story short, Greel tried to get me out of the way by demanding that I take part in some old ritual that connects dragons so they can communicate. Jokes on her though because it worked and that makes me an official dragon."

"You're not about to sprout scales or anything, are you?" asked Farah.

"I'm really hoping for a hard no on that. No offense to my people."

They heard the sound of wings approaching. Regg entered the chamber and said "Kaavi's reinstatement ceremony is about to begin. Your presence is requested."

"Looks like we're going to a dragon commencement." Said Todd.

"We have to get this plan in motion." Said Farah.

"We will." Said Todd "Once this is over, the Knelu will be a united people again. We stand our best chance of success if we wait until morning."

"What if this wears off by then?" asked Farah as she looked at her hands.

"We don't need it." Said Todd "You were a superhero long before you developed superpowers."

Farah's face softened. A small smile came across her face. Todd leaned in close, but his lips didn't quite touch hers. She slowly leaned in and kissed him.

"I've never kissed a dragon before." Said Farah.

Todd laughed. "Come on. We don't want to miss this."

* * *

"Tell me!"

Amanda screamed as the last shooting pain from the pararibulitis attack cut through her. It faded and she tried to catch her breath.

"What did you see?"

"I told you," she said angerly "I can't see the visions without the Rowdy 3!"

The doctor slammed down his clipboard.

"Fine!" he spat. "Bring her to them. We have them neutralized. We need to get some answers!"

 _Finally._ Thought Amanda. _Almost there._

A clerk entered. "Sir?"

"What?" said the very irritated doctor.

"We've had a breakthrough. The portal is almost ready. We can begin initiation procedures to subdue the dragon hive."

 _No!_ Thought Amanda. _Too soon!_

"Excellent." Said the doctor. He turned to Amanda. "I'm afraid our little fieldtrip will have to wait, Ms. Brotzman." He turned to the clerk. "How long until we are able to proceed?"

"Startup and preparation will take approximately seven hours."

The doctor nodded. "Take her back to her cell."

Amanda was wheeled back to the cell she shared with Dirk.

He ran over to her as soon as she was through the door.

"Are you alright?" he asked as she stumbled in.

"Had an attack." She said "They're trying to study it."

The orderlies left, and Amanda climbed onto her cot and stood. She didn't have much time. It was far easier to trigger an attack while still recovering from the last one. She had to contact Todd and warn him. While she had done it without an attack last time, it took a level of energy that she did not currently possess. This was her best bet, thought she knew it would be… difficult. For both of them.

"Catch." She said as she let herself fall backwards off the cot.

She didn't know if Dirk caught her or not, because she was transported into the dragon cave. She could see Todd and Farah sitting with a large, green dragon.

"Todd!" Amanda called.

He looked up and rushed towards her.

"Are you here? I mean actually here?" he asked.

"No. I'm in my cell. I had to contact you. I don't have much time. I had to call you through an attack, so if history repeats itself we've only got a little time before we're both really unhappy."

He nodded. "What do I need to know?"

"They're invading in the morning. They've figured out how to open a portal to trap the dragons in the hive into a pocket dimension! They're working on the final tests and initiation now."

"Shit! I thought we had more time."

"I wasn't able to get to the Rowdies. Get your team together and…" suddenly she was hit with such an icy blast that knocked the air out of her lungs.

It must have hit Todd as well. His skin turned blue and began frosting over. Amanda tried to call to him, but instead she found herself shivering uncontrollably in Dirk's arms.

* * *

"Todd! Todd!"

Todd couldn't speak. He could barely breathe. He was trapped in a blizzard no one else could see. He couldn't even stand. The wind was cutting through his clothes and flesh and freezing him to the bone.

Farah and Kaavi were crowded around his shivering form.

"What's happening?!" Kaavi cried.

"Todd, can you hear me?" asked Farah. She put her hand on his face. He felt no warmth from her skin. He knew what that meant. His body couldn't get warm. His nerves had blocked off anything that would contradict the sensation of freezing to death.

"Bring the healers!" Kaavi cried.

 _I have to warn them…_ Todd thought, but his mouth couldn't form words through his numb lips and chattering teeth.

Soon, Todd was surrounded by maroon healers who were scurrying about.

"What's happening?" The voice belonged to Regg.

"I believe it is his disease." Said Kaavi. "I feel that same, strange energy that I felt when we found him." She looked at Farah. "I wish we could speak to her."

Todd was curled up tightly, his body trying desperately to battle the nonexistent cold. All his attempts to speak resulted in unintelligible sputters.

"Lie still." Said Farah and Kaavi simultaneously.

"Try and relax as much as possible." Said Farah. "Don't fight. That makes it last longer."

"The Healers are here." Said Kaavi. "We will care for you."

It was getting harder and harder for Todd to think of anything besides the cold. He had a message, but he couldn't remember it.

"He seems to be cold." Said Regg "Should I collect blankets to warm him?"

"His body think he is cold." Said a healer "But it is not. Trying to raise his body temperature will not alleviate his symptoms."

"Then help him sleep." Said Kaavi "If we cannot relieve the pain, then he should not have to suffer through it."

Todd recognized the scent of the balm they put on him the first day he was there. Kaavi gently smeared it across his forehead and he felt his eyes begin to close. Farah seemed to understand what was happening and gently stroked his cheek. Todd felt his consciousness fade into black.

* * *

Sedating someone during a pararibulitis attack was not a great option. It sent the nerves into a confused state and could, long term, make the condition worse. But without medicine or the Rowdies, Farah knew there wasn't really a better alternative. She'd seen Todd suffer attacks without meds. It was horrifying and could last a very long time. As his eyes closed and the tension left his body, Kaavi gently uncurled the tight ball he had curled into, and lifted him into her arms.

She began to walk and gestured for Farah to follow. She led them to a nest where Kaavi placed Todd in the center. She then reached over and lifted Farah into the nest as well and set her next to Todd.

Kaavi then laid down, making her body a circle around the two humans. It was the same way Regg had laid around Farah when she had been injured.

 _She's protecting us._

Farah laid down next to Todd and put her arm across his chest.

"Rest up." She said "We have a big day tomorrow."

* * *

Todd felt so warm and peaceful as he woke. In the back of his mind, he knew he was supposed to remember something. A message, or a plan, or… something.

Farah's head was resting against his chest. He was still almost as asleep as he was awake, so it didn't even register that this was unusual. He only knew that if felt nice to have her snuggled close.

He shifted carefully, not wanting to wake her. He also was aware of Kaavi. Her warm, leathery scales were protectively surrounding them. Todd felt very safe and content, except for that nagging in the back of his brain that he was supposed to remember something.

 _Amanda._

Todd sat straight up, suddenly wide awake. His abrupt movement woke Farah and Kaavi.

"We have to go!" Todd cried.

"What?" said Farah.

"The attack! That was Amanda trying to reach me! They're coming! They've figured out a way to trap the dragons in the colony!"

Kaavi let out a war cry. Several messenger dragons were instantly at her side.

"Assemble the troops! Evacuate the citizens! We attack now!"

* * *

Dr. Matiss was pleased with his teams progress. Their ability to tap into their subjects' brain to manipulate his ability to control portals was beyond successful. Dr. Matiss was annoyed at first at their policy to try and work with the subjects before just hijacking their brains to use their abilities. But, as several other scientists has noted, there were sometimes details and nuances to their abilities that could more easily be discovered through participating subjects.

It was impossible to get an accurate reading of inside the nearby dragon hive. The electromagnetic fields and geological makeup common in this dimension were unlike anything seen on Earth and made their sensors next to useless. And since their arrival, the dragons had retreated further and further into the hive. The other dragon colonies were less guarded, but they were also too far from the base to be worth the effort. It had taken a lot of time and funds to create their base, and it would be at least another eight months before they could make another one. It was important that they capture and study a live dragon before they made any final decisions about their new base.

He smiled as he looked at the encouraging results from the sensors. This pocket dimension was a perfect holding cell. Then they could extract them, one by one, into the lab to be studied. Everything was finally falling into place.

"Begin power up." He said.

* * *

Todd was riding into battle on the back of a dragon.

As they flew over the trees and waterfalls, Todd could hardly believe that not long ago he was a bored and depressed bellhop with no goals and no future.

He held on tight to the spines coming out of Kaavi's back. Farah was sitting behind him with her arms around his waist. Her grip was so strong, and Todd knew that if only took a fraction of her newfound strength to hold him better than any seatbelt.

"We're almost there." Said Kaavi.

"We're close." Said Todd to Farah.

He felt her muscles tense as she prepared. He knew she was still afraid of hurting him, but there was no one in any dimension that he trusted more to control it.

They were over the drop point.

"Go!" cried Kaavi.

"Now!" shouted Todd.

Farah leaped off Kaavi's back with Todd in her arms. They landed in the mossy area near the human base. Kaavi said it would be soft enough to absorb Farah's fall. Her body absorbed what was left of the impact, and she set Todd gently on the ground.

Todd was grinning.

"What?" she said.

"This. This whole thing! I mean, how cool is it? I can talk to dragons and you have super strength and we're in another dimension saving an entire community for an evil force!"

"Let's get through this alive and then we can revel in it." She said.

Todd snorted. "If we wait until we're out of danger to enjoy the moments, we'll never enjoy anything."

"Ok, you have a point." Said Farah.

Todd took her hand. "So…"

She hesitated and then said, "It is pretty crazy."

"Good crazy?"

"Some of it."

"Eh, I'll take that."

Farah leaned in and kissed him softly. "Let's go save your dragons."

Todd smiled. "Lead the way."

They approached the South end of the tower. They weren't sure if the scientists had beefed up security since they were there last. Todd tried to remember how long ago that was. A few days? It felt like much much longer.

They didn't even try to enter the doors on the ground level. Locked or not, they weren't the target.

"Get ready." Said Farah.

Todd went behind her and climbed into her back. She didn't seem to even notice his added weight on her small frame. He held on tight. "Ready."

Farah leaped straight up the side of the building to almost the second floor. She then climbed the rest of the way to the emergency exit on the side of the building. All the doors were too small except for the smallest of the dragons, so there wasn't a lot of fear of a break in that way. And since the maroon, healer dragons rarely left the caves, they weren't sure if the humans even knew they existed.

Farah punched into the door and disconnected the emergency alarm. She opened it up and climbed in. Todd hopped off her back. Farah went to a control panel on the wall near the exit door.

"They are so arrogant." Said Farah "They honestly believe they are well enough hidden from humans, and they have no grasp of the dragon's intelligence."

"Now what?" asked Todd.

"We have no weapons and the place is too well defended for the dragons to do an outward assault, so we bring it down from the inside."

"Let's do it." Said Todd.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"Dr. Matiss?"

The scientist turned to the operator on his left.

"Yes?"

"There appears to be a power fluctuation on the third floor."

"What kind of power fluctuation?" he asked.

"Unclear. Readings are barely off enough to trigger the sensors."

"Do we have cameras there?" he asked.

"Negative. Though it is near the cell where we are keeping Dirk Gently and Amanda Brotzman."

"Bring up the camera on their cell door." He said.

The monitor lit up and showed nothing at first, and then they saw it. A male figure approaching the door.

"That… can't be right." Said the operator.

But there was no mistaking the face and form on the screen.

"Todd Brotzman. How did he survive the dragons?"

"We must have underestimated his injuries and resourcefulness." Said a nearby security guard who had come closer to examine the footage.

"Well," said Dr. Matiss "he's underestimated us as well. Send a trio of guards to collect him. Perhaps he can be used to help motivate our captives."

The guards had just entered the corner of the screen when the footage erupted into static.

"What happened?" asked Matiss.

"Power is down on that whole grid!" exclaimed the operator.

"Emergency procedures! Now!"

* * *

Todd was punching random numbers into the keypad outside Amanda and Dirk's cell. What he was doing really didn't matter. He was the bait.

Farah was crouched and ready just outside the camera's view. Her body felt like a spring that was pressed down and ready to fly out. The power she felt running through her muscles still scared her a little, but she knew she needed to push that aside as she prepared for battle. Todd and the others were counting on her to keep it together and focus.

Three armed guards flanked Todd. She was glad they were wearing body armor. That meant she was less likely to accidentally kill them.

Farah leaped out of her hiding space and grabbed one guard in each hand. The one in her left was swung around, colliding with the third guard and both went crashing through a wall. The one in her right hand was thrown through the control panel, causing a forced shut down of the main power grid for the area and the few cameras for the bottom half of the building.

The doors leading outside were unlocked and allowed over twenty of the smaller, maroon, dragons to enter in through the ground level.

Todd and Farah raced into the cell. Amanda and Dirk were waiting excitedly at the door of their still locked cell.

"It's on a separate grid." Said Amanda "If you override the front panel it should…"

She didn't get to finish before Farah ripped the door off of the cell hinges.

"Or… that." Said Amanda, still a bit stunned.

Todd ran over and embraced his sister.

"Um…" said Dirk as he stared at the dismantled door. "Is that an option we should have considered sooner?"

"Farah has super strength!" exclaimed Todd.

"Really?!" said Dirk with wide eyed wonder "That is so…"

"Cool! Right?!" cried Todd.

A maroon dragon raced into the room and stopped in front of Todd. It made some strange sounds. Dirk and Amanda each took a step back.

"Um… hi?" said Amanda to the dragon.

Todd was staring at the dragon intently. Then he said "They have backup generators. Send team one to begin to take out the backups. Team two needs to release all the captives they can find. Start at the top floor and work your way down for an exit."

The dragon made another sound and then raced out.

Dirk blinked and looked over at Farah. "Did he just…"

"Talk to a dragon?" said Farah "Yes. He can communicate with them now."

"This is the coolest day ever!" cried Amanda.

"The Rowdies are one floor up." Said Todd "We need to get them to Amanda and they can take out the rest of the guards."

Amanda shook her head and looked at Dirk. "I cannot believe we've been trapped in a cell while these two were out getting superpowers!"

"We've missed so much!" lamented Dirk.

"Yeah well," said Todd "we need your holistic thingy now." He turned to his sister. "We need to help you get the Rowdies out. I figure you all work best as a group."

"Sounds good." Said Amanda.

Farah turned to Dirk. "You're with us. Can you sense which way to go?"

"The stairs at the end of the hall." Said Dirk.

"Are you sure?" asked Farah.

Dirk nodded. "It's really strong all of a sudden. I'm positive that is where we need to go." Then he tensed up.

"What's wrong?" asked Farah.

"Not… wrong. Different. Something… powerful. Similar. Like how I felt when I met Bart, but… not."

"Kaavi must be close." Said Todd. "I wondered if you could sense her."

"Why?" asked Dirk.

"Because, I think she's like a dragon you."

* * *

"Now!"

Kaavi's army surrounded the human base. They howled and hurled rocks and tore at the sides of the building. Normally, the humans would deploy their weapons and begin shooting them out of the sky. But since the outside defenses had been disarmed, they were safe to cause mayhem.

Of course, the humans were still armed, but with the building defenses off and pandemonium happening inside, the goal was to divide and distract. They had to buy Todd and Farah enough time to finish the job.

Then Kaavi felt it. A pull. A strange pull that she had not felt anything like since her mother died. There was someone, someone near, who was like her. Like her mother. Someone who could sense… it.

She blinked as the connection was lost.

"Stay safe." She said.

* * *

Dirk's legs were still killing him from yesterday's run, but he somehow managed to keep up. They reached the Rowdies cell and Farah ripped the door off with her bare hands.

The five of them rushed out, whooping and hollering and embracing Amanda.

"We'll hit the main control room." Said Amanda.

"We've got the basement." Said Todd. He turned to his sister. "Stay safe."

She nodded and ran off with her gang. Todd, Farah and Dirk made their way to the stairwell. Despite only being a few floors up, it was a lot of steps.

"This is going to take too long." Said Farah. She grabbed Todd around the waist on her left side and Dirk around his waist on her right. "Hold on." She said as she leaped down two floors, adjusted her grip, and then leaped again to the bottom of the stairwell.

Dirk was in awe as Farah set him down on the ground.

"That was… unbelievable!" he exclaimed.

"I know!" cried Todd "You should have seen her punch out a dragon! Not a little one either! A huge, bus sized…"

"Can we focus?" asked Farah.

"Sorry." Said the boys.

Dirk closed his eyes and felt it. "This way." He said as he raced down the hall. "Here." He said as he stood in front of the room where he had been taken before."

Farah forcibly removed the door, and they entered.

Todd shuttered. "Well, this is nightmare fuel."

They looked at Travis, hooked up to all those machines.

"How do we get him out without killing him?" asked Farah "We have no idea how dependent he is on those machines to stay alive."

"Or how to turn them off without frying his brain or something." Added Todd.

Dirk felt it again, and it was the strongest it had been since they'd fallen through the portal. He knew what to do. He began pressing buttons and pulling wires at a furious rate.

"What is he doing?" asked Farah.

"Something holistic… I hope." Said Todd.

Dirk continued in a frenzy and then it suddenly stopped. There was nothing else he felt he needed to do.

"Now what?" asked Todd.

"I… I don't know." Admitted Dirk.

"Is he ok?" Farah asked as she leaned over Travis.

They all stared at the still form on the table.

Then he gasped.

The trio leaned in as Travis slowly opened his eyes. He looked around the room, and then passed back out.

"Let's get him out of here." Said Todd.

Farah scooped Travis up into her arms as they raced to the stairwell.

Todd opened the door, and Dirk pulled him back just as the spot where Todd had been standing was sprayed with bullets.

Farah put Travis down and pushed a huge piece of equipment in front of the door to slow down their pursuers.

"This way!" Dirk yelled as they raced to the other end of the basement.

"Emergency elevator." Said Farah "It's on a separate generator. It should still work."

They piled in and Dirk hit the roof button.

"What are you doing?" said Farah.

"It's imperative that we go to the roof." Said Dirk.

"It will be harder to escape from there." Said Farah.

"Todd! Todd can you hear me?"

The radio in the elevator crackled to life with Amanda's voice.

"I'm here!" he said.

"All us Rowdies are in the command center." Said Amanda "Sensors are saying there's four of you in the emergency elevator."

"Yeah. We found Travis." Said Todd.

"Head to the roof." Said Amanda "The dragons seem to be evacuating. We think they set something off. We don't know what since our resident translator is in an elevator. And the dragons outside are giving it a real pounding. It's a warzone on the lower levels. No way you can fight your way out. Well, Farah could, but you two would die. We are going to try and clear a way for you."

"No." said Todd "Just get out. We'll find our own way. Don't worry about us. We've got a plan."

Dirk turned to Todd and mouthed "do we?", to which Todd shook his head no.

"Ok." Said Amanda. "Be careful. We're going to clear out as many of these creeps as we can. See you soon. Rowdies out."

They had barely gotten out of the elevator when there was an explosion and the entire building shook.

"What was that?" Dirk cried.

"One of the generators blew." Said Farah "The structural integrity of this building can only take so much. A few more of those, and this place is going to crumble."

They ran to the edge of the roof and saw both dragons and humans pouring out of the doors. Alarms were blaring. The building was on fire. Dirk could hear a Rowdy war cry and watched as the six members of the Rowdy 3 chased a group of scientists and guards into the woods.

Another explosion. The building shook again.

"Can you make that jump?" Todd asked Farah.

"Maybe." Said Farah "But not with all three of you.

"Take Travis." Said Todd "Dirk and I will find another way out."

They could hear roars and gunfire below.

Farah looked at the two of them. "I can't just leave you. How will you get out?"

"I don't know." admitted Dirk "But Travis is the priority. If you don't get him out of here, he will die. Todd and I can take care of ourselves."

A look came over Farah's face that made Dirk believe she doubted that. The building shook again.

Todd looked at Farah. "You have to get Travis out of here! Trust us! We will figure this out!"

Dirk could see the wheels spinning in Farah's mind. She was trying to figure out an alternative. She wasn't finding one and they were running out of time.

"We're wasting valuable time debating this." Said Dirk.

"I'll get Travis to safety and then I'm coming back for you." Said Farah.

"We'll be out long before then." Said Todd.

There was another explosion. The smoke coming out of the building was getting thicker.

"Go!" cried Dirk.

Farah leaped off the building with Travis in her arms. She landed safely and ran Travis into the woods and away from the fighting that was happening.

The dragons had long ago stopped putting focus on attacking the building and were fighting the armed humans below.

"Can you call to them?" asked Dirk "Yell that we need a lift or something?"

"I don't know if they can hear me over all this, but I can try." Said Todd. He took a deep breath, but before he could let out a sound, a gun went off nearby and both men whirled around to see what happened.

Dr. Matiss was standing there with blood pouring down his face from a gash on his scalp. He was pointing a pistol at them. The rage in his eyes made Dirk feel very afraid.

"You idiots!" he spat "You've destroyed everything! We are exploring the greatest scientific breakthroughs in history! And you have doomed us to be slaughtered by these animals!"

"They aren't animals!" Todd cried "If you had just taken five minutes to try and understand them…"

"We are trying to understand them!" cried Matiss "Why do you think we were opening a portal to use as a holding cell instead of just bombing their hive?!"

"Really?" said Dirk "Is that honestly the best answer you can come up with for your actions? The other captives and I have been treated like lab rats and I can't imagine you had anything better in mind for the dragons."

The building shook again. Dirk wondered how much more it could take. It was built like a fortress, but even a fortress can crumble with enough damage. They were certainly pushing the limits of this one.

"I gave you a chance!" barked the scientist to Dirk "You could have been part of an empire!" he pointed the gun at Todd's head. "And you. I should have been more thorough the first time I killed you."

The pull was so strong that Dirk barely felt like he had any control over his own body. He grabbed Todd and flung them both over the edge of the building just as the gun went off.

The two men grabbed hold of each other as they careened towards the ground.

Then an enormous, green dragon snatched them out of the air.

"Kaavi!" Todd cried.

The dragon howled and held the two of them tightly against its chest. Todd was hugging it.

"I was worried about you too." He said.

There was a larger explosion and the building collapsed into rubble.

The gunfire ceased as the dragons rounded up the last of the humans below.

"Where are we going?" asked Dirk.

"The cave. You'll love it. Trust me."

"Um, Todd." Said Dirk.

"Yeah?"

"We are literally being carried by a flying dragon over the heads of our defeated foes."

"I know!" Todd cried "Isn't it awesome?!"

"Best. Case. Ever."

* * *

Todd could not believe how good the food was. Apparently when dragons partied, they really partied.

Candy sweet fruits, savory meats, and decadent dishes he couldn't even begin to identify were piled on tables larger than Todd's bedroom.

When Travis woke up, he opened a portal so his former captors could be relocated to the very pocket dimension where they had planned on sending the dragons. Besides Dirk, Travis, and the Rowdies, there were seven other former captives of Matiss and the others. Five of them asked to immediately be transported home. Two asked to stay a bit longer and get to know the dragons. Kaavi promised to find someone gentler than Cha to help them if they chose to become citizens. Travis agreed to stay behind until everyone had chosen which dimension to remain in.

The celebratory feast put most human celebrations to shame.

They had been warned that the drinks would be much stronger than what they were used to. That didn't stop any of the Rowdies from indulging to various degrees. Todd tried one sip and knew it would be a mistake to go further.

There was music filled with instruments and vocals that produced sounds that humans could not reproduce. Dirk and Farah barely recognized it as music, but Todd could feel the melody in his soul. Without really intending to, Todd found himself dancing.

He was so much smaller than the other dancers, but they were mindful of him and gave him space. Then Amanda and the rest of the Rowdy Three joined in and soon Todd was in the middle of a fantastically wild dance shared by humans, dragons, and whatever Beast was. Todd was sweating and breathless and the dragons were laughing, both out of joy, and amusement at the creatures dancing on two legs.

When the music stopped, Todd was sad, but also thankful for a moment to catch his breath.

Farah approached him with a bowl of water. "You look like you could use this."

"Thank you." Todd gasped as he took the bowl and downed the cool and slightly flowery tasting water. He took a moment to breathe and then said, "When the band starts up again, you should dance with us."

Farah smiled. "Yeah, I'm still struggling to dance along with human music. I'm not sure I'm ready for a dragon mosh pit."

Todd smiled. "What if they play something slower? Could you dance to that?"

"You mean do the Prom Hang at Dragonfest?"

"Why not?" he asked teasingly.

Farah put her hands on Todd's shoulders. "Like this?"

"And my hands go here." He said, placing his hands on her small waist. "There. Classic Prom Hang form."

"We can start a dance craze." Said Farah.

"Oh yeah. They've never seen sweet dance moves like this here. It will spread like wildfire through this whole dimension."

"I'm so glad we can make such a positive impact on their culture." She said.

Todd laughed, and Farah smiled. A real smile that made her brown eyes sparkle. Todd leaned in and they kissed.

"That was uncharacteristically public of us." She said.

He shrugged. "Well, they do think we're married anyway."

"Well, I guess we don't want to confuse your new family." She said as she pulled his body against hers.

Farah was still inhumanly strong, but the effects of the Dragonblood had started to fade. Todd could feel the difference as she held him.

Knowing he could sense it, she said "I'm glad it's starting to wear off."

"Why is that?" he asked.

"I feel more in control without it. Like my body isn't going to overcompensate and destroy without intending to." She touched his face. "Admit it. You'll be thankful when I no longer have the ability to break you in half."

"Oh please." Said Todd "You've had the ability to do that since the day we met. I'm just thankful you're gentle. With or without superpowers."

"Todd! Farah!" shouted Dirk as he burst through the crowd of dragons. He was hanging onto them for support and had a big grin on his face. "I love dragon parties! And dragon food! And that spicy dragon fruit juice that burned but makes me feel oh so wonderful!"

"Wow." Said Farah "I think you've had enough dragon fruit juice for tonight."

"I'm just so happy!" Dirk slurred with an enormous smile on his face. "I'm so very happy that I only feel a little bit sad that Todd found a new best friend."

"Wait," said Todd "what new best friend?"

"Ka… Kaav… Kavinnii… the green dragon queen who has been such a good friend to my best friend! I hope you don't mind that you're still my best friend even though I'm not yours. While bestfriendom clearly is best when it goes both ways, I've learned not to be too picky when it comes to rules about the few friendships I've had and…"

"Dirk," Todd said as he put his hand on the detective's shoulder. "Kaavi is great and we are really close, but you're still my best friend. Nothing changed that."

Dirk's eyes welled up and his lip quivered. He tried hard to keep his voice even and nonchalant as he said, "Oh. Alright. That is good… information. To have." He nodded and patted Todd's shoulder.

"Dirk," said Farah "are you ok?"

Dirk nodded and squeaked something that sounded a bit like "Mmhmm." In response. Then he apparently couldn't hold it in anymore and wrapped Todd into a huge hug. Todd caught Farah's eye as she smiled at them. He hugged Dirk back.

Just then, Kaavi swooped down onto a large rock, making her visible to the entire crowd.

"People of the Knelu Council of Dragons!" she boomed.

The crowd was silent as they turned to their leader.

"Tonight we celebrate, not just the defeat of a foe, but of a friendship and alliance that spans worlds!"

The crowd cheered.

"As we welcome our new friends, we also must sadly say goodbye to the ones who paved the way for this new partnership. Only two of our new family will remain, and we must say farewell to those who taught us that humans and dragons are more alike in spirit than we could have ever imagined."

There were murmurs of agreement.

Amanda had moved towards Todd and threw her arm over his shoulder and squeezed him tight. She smelled like dragon wine and sweat and pure joy. While Todd was the only one who understood the words, he looked around at the others and knew they were catching the meaning of Kaavi's speech.

"We will miss you." Said Kaavi with a catch in her voice. "You have taught us so much. Your influence shall be felt to the end of times." She looked over the crowd until her eyes met Todd's.

"We cannot thank you enough. And while this is hardly a piece of what you deserve, please accept it with the heart it is given." And with that, she lifted her head and exposed her throat.

Todd felt a wave of emotion as the crowd turned to them and echoed their leaders' movement. Soon, and entire community of dragons was saluting them.

"Umm…" said Amanda "what's going on?"

Farah held Todd's hand tightly. She understood, and Todd could see the emotion on her face as well.

"They're saying thanks." Said Dirk dreamily. "Right? I am right, aren't I?"

"Yeah." Said Todd with a huge smile. "You're right."

* * *

The next day, the group of returning humans stood at the base of the waterfall where they'd entered this incredible land.

Dirk was still nursing a bit of a hangover, though the maroon dragons had given him something that seemed to take the edge off his pounding head. Amanda and the rest of the Rowdies seemed fine. Travis was staying behind a bit longer, but he had given them a letter for his parents to let them know he was alright and would be home soon.

Kaavi approached Todd.

"Are you sure you do not wish to stay? You could have a full life with our people."

"I know." He said "And it's tempting. But I have to go back. My world needs Dirk, and Dirk sometimes needs me."

She nodded. "He feels the pull, as I do."

"And the pull is telling you I have to go, isn't it?" said Todd.

"Yes." She said sadly "But I want it to be wrong."

"Me too." He said. Then he opened his arms and she scooped him up into a tight embrace. Eventually, she released him and he joined his human friends.

"Farewell." Said Kaavi "You are always welcome to return. We will throw a feast in your honor."

"I plan to take you up on that." Said Todd with a smile. He looked at Kaavi and Regg and the small collection of dragons that had come to wish them goodbye.

"Thank you." He said "For everything."

"Ready?" asked Travis.

"Ready." Said Farah.

The group of humans stood still as Travis opened a portal on the ground in front of him.

"I wonder what's next." Said Amanda "What new craziness we'll find on the other side. I mean, how do you top getting adopted by dragons?"

"I guess we should find out." Said Farah.

"On to the next case!" exclaimed Dirk.

Todd took one last look back at Kaavi, and then they all leaped through.

The End


End file.
